Fated Friendship
by The Symbol of Faith
Summary: Hearing about Kudo and getting compared to him had been one thing; investigating his sudden disappearance another. But getting involved in the deadly case that had been the cause of said disappearance? That had not been part of the plan at all. But given another chance, Heiji wouldn't change a thing. Because being friends with Shinichi had been the best thing that happened to him.
1. Detectives of East and West

**AN: Hello! My second DC fanfic. I do hope people liked the 'Silver Bullet'.**

 **This one is based on Hattori Heiji and Kudo Shinichi's unique friendship. Their meeting was unconventional but almost as if it were fated. Meeting first on that case when they were thirteen and being called Hattori of the West and Kudo of the East...it was the start of a wonderful rivalry. Then the way they became friends and slowly best buds, it was beautiful!**

 **We've all read and seen it from Shinichi's point of view. This story will be from Heiji's perspective. It might have a couple of scenes from someone else's pov, but that will be rare.**

 **To my C.I.D. and Harry Potter readers, I'm very sorry about the lack of updates. _I_ hope I'll be updating soon.**

 **That said, please read and review. Enjoy!**

 **.**

"Dialogues"

' _Thoughts'_

* * *

Chapter 1: Detectives of East and West

* * *

The first time they had met – _almost_ met – it was a mere premonition. A feeling that that person would one day become his greatest rival or most cherished friend.

Of course, then he had not really known what that premonition was, just that it was an odd feeling he should pay attention to. Kazuha must be rubbing off him if he has now started to believe in fate and destiny or some shit like that.

But at that moment, he did not know what else to call it. The case had just gotten over; he had presented his deduction to the officers, finally attaining that last piece of clue from his father – much to his ire – to complete his theory. The police had been impressed, as they _should_ be, with his deduction and he had felt euphoria like never before. And then his elation was brought down to Earth with a sudden jerk –

"Inspector, what do I do about this middle-school student on the end of the phone? He made the same deduction as that kid…and almost simultaneously!"

 _'_ _What!'_

Heiji couldn't believe it! The other detective had come to the same conclusion as him? And without anyone's help either, he bet. He was slightly furious and envious, but accepted the defeat for what it was.

"Hey, Heiji!" Kazuha complained as he hoisted her onto his back in a piggy-back hold, "Put me down! This is so embarrassing!"

"Quiet down, will you?" Heiji snapped back without any real heat, "You're the one who practised crazily to join this ski trip that you twisted your ankle! Besides, it was due to this ankle of yours that I realised that the victim was actually inside the bag…"

A gust of wind, a faint murmur of voices and a single glance back – _'That had to be the other middle school student_ ,' Heiji thought, _'it is difficult to clearly see each other in this snow storm, but we're detectives, so we will meet somewhere, when the stage filled with mystery coincides once more…'_

At that moment, neither knew just how much their thoughts coincided.

* * *

It had been a year since that fateful day at the snow covered mountain top and at fourteen, Heiji was much more formidable as a fledgling detective than he had been before. But despite that, his father would not hear of him helping out in any cases.

"Too young to be poking about a crime scene! Cadavers should not be holding your interests at this age!"

His mother would agree. He knew his parents were slightly worried about his choice in becoming a detective. They approved certainly, and were quite proud of his intellect too, but they did not understand why he felt the need to begin his so called 'career' at such a young age.

He was in it for the thrill – for delivering justice, yes that too – but everyday things were so _mundane_ and boring that they did not captivate him for long.

People – they fascinated him. People were unpredictable, their actions, their thoughts – they varied and changed and no matter how much he tried to predict them, they defied his expectations in some way. Cases, be it homicide or otherwise, meant interacting with different people. A new challenge, something that would excite him out of the general ordinary things of life…

His parents, unfortunately, never understood this. His father's face had pinched closed when he mentioned that he was in it for the 'thrill', and told him to rethink his thoughts.

Okay, what? Here he was getting bored out of his mind at school, the small cases his classmates asked him to solve were no challenge at all, and he longed for that heady rush of adrenaline that he had felt at that mountain-top solving a murder. What did his father exactly want from him?

Kazuha never really understood it either. She was all for justice, her father being a police officer, but she did not see herself becoming an officer of the law.

"Not a police-man, Kazuha!" Heiji had told her, "A detective! Detectives are private investigators! We take on cases people ask us to and solve it for them! The police are law enforcement. Detectives cannot make arrests or anything of the sort."

"Isn't that a disadvantage?"

"Nah, even though detectives do not have such rights, at least they don't have to report every action they make to a superior. You only work for yourself."

Because joining the police in the future and answering to his own father for every movement he made was not an appealing notion. Also, apart from a few high ranking officers, the others were a little dull…for lack of a better word. He could not see himself working with them, or with any one for that matter, who were below his intellectual level.

As such, the first case he was involved in and actually solved it by himself, was one he stumbled into by pure coincidence.

* * *

"Hey, Otaki-han. You my baby-sitter today?" Heiji drawled.

Because, really, that was exactly what he was. Every free day he spent in the police station would be supervised by some or the other officer. By now, everyone knew who he was – Son of Chief Superintendent Hattori Heizo, Hattori Heiji.

"Hei-chan! You know that's not true!" The man grimaced at the word 'baby-sitter'.

"Sorry," Heiji muttered.

In a way, they were both right. While Hattori senior did assign an officer to watch over his son at the precinct, Otaki Goro was the only inspector who actually liked accompanying him and looked forward to it. The others mostly had the impression that he was a bit too full of himself as he was the Chief's son.

"So, Hei-chan, how was school?" Otaki-han asked him amicably and took a seat beside him at the police cafeteria.

And that was another thing, he was the only one apart from his mother who used that horrible nick name – 'Hei-chan'. The man had known him since he was a kid though, so that was alright…a bit.

"Same old, same old. You off duty?"

"Yes, why? Do you want me to drive you to some place?"

This was another reason he liked Otaki-han; the man may not be one of the greatest detectives, but he could read Heiji well enough at least.

"Yup," Heiji grinned and showed him a bit of paper, "My classmate's place. His nee-chan's got a request for me."

"Oh?"

"Background check, nothing serious."

"Hei-chan…you know your father doesn't much like this. Even a back-ground check is an invasion of privacy. You're not a legal detective you know."

Heiji scowled as he got up, Otaki-han reluctantly following, "I'm not going to hack into anything or review a person's phone record or something, you know. That nee-chan wants me to check out her boyfriend and see if he is clean or not – he was caught at that bar raid three months ago. He was found clean then, but she has her suspicions. She just wants to be sure before inviting him home to meet the parents…"

"Oh, okay then…"

"A little more faith would be appreciated."

"You know I trust you, Hei-chan!"

"Yeah, yeah…"

* * *

The boyfriend was found murdered in his house.

Otaki-han and Heiji had barely knocked at the door before it fell open. It had taken Heiji all of five minutes of careful observation before ruling out suicide and another two before declaring it a murder. Ten minutes later, when the dispatch team and coroners examined the body and reached the same conclusion, Heiji had told Otaki-han that if he truly trusted him then he would bring forth the following suspects Heiji had compiled a list of.

The inspector in charge of the case had not been happy with a teenager's interference, but not even he could refute the logic behind the accusation.

Four hours later, the case had been wrapped up, culprit arrested with all necessary evidence, and the police had returned after taking their statements.

"That was brilliant Hei-chan!" Otaki-han praised him.

He knew he was brilliant, but hearing it from Otaki-han, the only officer that day to compliment him… his face glowed.

"Thanks, Otaki-han." Heiji would have to revise his statement, out of all his baby-sitters, Otaki-han was not just tolerable – he was the best!

The subsequent 'Well done, son' from his father had been the icing on the cake.

* * *

It was two months later that he first heard the rumors.

Kudo Shinichi from Tokyo had been making a name for himself as a pretty competent junior-high student detective. Heiji frowned, why were they so concerned about Tokyo's student detective when there was one in Kansai too – him!

But apparently Inspector Hiroki from Arson had an old friend in Tokyo's Division One (Homicide) who wouldn't stop talking about what a brilliant young man this 'Kudo' was.

The cafeteria had become Heiji's favourite haunt in the police station; not only was it a nice, quiet place to read, but it also provided him with the opportunity to eavesdrop into the recent precinct gossip. Policemen gossiped like old housewives, seriously!

"He works mostly with Megure's team" Inspector Hiroki was telling his associates, "Apparently, the boy's father was his old friend."

"Oh? Is he any good? Or is he just playing about at being detective?"

Heiji grit his teeth at that! One did not play about at being detective! These officers did not really know how much effort and pain he had put into to gather all the necessary knowledge and instincts to be a good detective.

"Oh no! Megure insists he is quite good. Kudo's father was a consultant before and now Megure actually calls upon the boy when they are stuck with a case!"

"You're exaggerating!"

"Not really, you only have to check out the Tokyo Times to see it! There's an article about a case he's solved almost every week. The number of cases the kid stumbles upon is not even funny!"

Heiji had gone home that day with only one name in his mind – Kudo Shinichi.

* * *

Heiji had scoured the whole school before he found out that 2-B's Amane Shiori subscribed to Tokyo Times. She was agreeable enough to let him read it every day at break time to see if he could spot any mention of Kudo Shinichi.

He had no luck for two whole weeks. When he finally did spot the name of his rival from the East, he nearly missed it. There was a small article regarding the murder of a wealthy landlord, the police's work on the case and how middle school student-detective, Kudo Shinichi, had been the one to finally solve the case. That's it. One name and no other mention.

Heiji was slightly disappointed at the lack of information, but he was finally glad to have heard of him.

The days passed, and every other week, his search in the Tokyo Times resulted in a small mention of the other detective.

By the end of his third year of middle school, Heiji had actively taken to following his cases after an officer – they had _finally_ begun to respect him for his own skills! – teasingly mentioned, "We have our own student-detective here. Almost as if they are maintaining the balance - Kudo of the East and Hattori of the West!"

* * *

There was one incident – an arson case – that had not ended quite smoothly. He had been uninjured of course, but his mother had kicked up quite the fuss. Kazuha had been extremely worried too, so he had given in to their demands and dutifully stayed at home for the entire weekend.

Bored out of his mind, he idly wondered if his eastern counterpart ever had to deal with his parent's overprotectiveness.

Since Kudo had actually given a couple interviews by now – all case related though – he had finally gotten an idea of his rival's thinking. He had been impressed, without a doubt. Many of the cases had been complicated, excruciatingly so. However, his personal life remained quite the mystery.

Suddenly curious, he switched on his desktop to see if the search engine could provide anything on Kudo Shinichi. It did. Kudo Shinichi was quite famous in his own right. Apart from being one of the top students in Tokyo, there were also a few articles about his school soccer team. They had played in the regionals, though had not qualified for nationals. A missed penalty kick by yours truly, it seemed.

What was surprising was that the search for 'Kudo' had popped out various articles and mentions of a novel series by Kudo Yusaku. A mystery writer who is especially famous for his Night Baron series and married to the legendary Japanese actress Fujimine Yukiko (now Kudo Yukiko). It only took him a moment to compare their black and white pictures from the newspaper and see the resemblance.

Well, that answered his questions about Kudo's family life. His parents were overseas and been so since the past two years, a little before Kudo had begun solving cases.

A part of him was envious at Kudo's relative freedom while another part wondered what kind of family would leave their thirteen year old son alone in Tokyo while they settled abroad.

* * *

"Congratulations Hattori-san! Would you care for a small interview?"

Heiji had finally done it! He had won the national championship in kendo in his third and final year of middle school. His kendo master and other club-mates were more ecstatic than him though, with the way they pounced over him, thumping his back and letting out loud cheers and whoops.

The small interview for the monthly sports magazine done with, he was approached by another reporter,

"Hattori-san, I work for ' _Young Youth'_ , a monthly periodical. Your amateur detective work has gained quite a bit of recognition in the social media. If you would answer a few questions …?"

It was the first time he had given an interview of such a nature. It was different from the ones he gave after solving a case, more general and quite a few questions about his personal life had also been thrown in.

There was one question though that had made him pause, uncertain as to how he should respond,

"The article in ' _Naniwa News'_ , last month, had spoken of something quite interesting. I quote, ' _They are both quite splendid young detectives! Hattori of the West and Kudo of the East!'_ unquote. What are your thoughts on this?"

Heiji had seen it too. That was the first time the both of them had been mentioned in such a way. Tokyo Times had published no such article or even mentioned him anywhere, but Naniwa News had apparently decided to make a story about the two detectives.

Which brought forth the question – what did he think about it?

"Well, I have never met the guy really," Heiji began, "so I can't really say what kind of a detective he is. But you might say we're like rivals. To hear the both of us compared so often, I think I want to know why…so when we do meet, I'm sure we would be rivals as detectives of the East and West."

* * *

His first year of high school passed without much fanfare. The cases Kudo solved started to appear more frequently in the paper and the complexity of the cases Heiji encountered had also increased. The only thing that irked him was the kendo championship – some guy named Okita had managed land a blow on him, giving him a cut below his ear and that had been the final point, giving Okita the championship title. His loss stung quite a bit and he promised to get his revenge next year.

Another notable point was Kudo's rise in fame. The Tokyo Times had not only dubbed him as the 'Heisei Holmes' but also 'The saviour of Tokyo Police'. Bit of a high praise, it seemed to Heiji, but looking at the picture of Megure with his arm slung around Kudo's shoulder, posing at the camera like a proud Uncle, he supposed it might be true.

Heisei Holmes though…

Naniwa News had dubbed him 'The Great Detective of the West'; clearly alluding to the fact that there was a 'Great Detective of the East', but that had been it. It took him reading a couple of Kudo's interviews to figure out where that nickname had originated from. Apparently Sherlock Holmes had been Kudo's inspiration and role model and the media had taken a look at his prowess in deductive abilities and promptly named him the 'Modern Holmes'.

* * *

It was a couple of weeks after the start of his second year that he realised it – there had not been a single mention of Kudo's cases in the paper the past week. Not. One. Case.

That in itself shouldn't be so surprising, or alarming; it was the appearance of a new detective – Mouri Kogoro.

And it didn't end there. For the next few weeks, Mouri-tantei's sudden uprising of fame and talent continued to make its appearance in the newspaper while Kudo seemed to have disappeared into thin air.

"Why do you look ready to pull out your hair, Heiji?"

"Huh?" Heiji looked up from his perusal of the Tokyo Times, "Oh, Kazuha, it's you. Nothing much, I just can't understand why Kudo's cases are no longer featured…"

Kazuha narrowed her eyes, "Kudo? That detective from Tokyo?"

"Aa. Mouri Kogoro seems to be the new genius detective in Tokyo now – " _'almost…almost as if he's taken Kudo's place.'_

It went on for two months before he had had enough of it. From what he had read about Mouri's cases, he had solved all of them very similarly to a certain teenage detective of the East and the only thing he could garner from it was that it was not Mouri but Kudo solving them. But, why? Why would he use that old man as a front to solve his cases? As far as the news reporters knew, it was Mouri solving the case, so did that mean Kudo was not actively solving them but only advising Mouri?

Taking a glance at his schedule, he noted that Friday seemed to be a holiday for them. A long weekend. Perfect for a visit to Tokyo.

"Okan, I'm going to Tokyo for the weekend." Heiji told his mother over dinner.

"Tokyo?" Hattori Shizuka was confused, "Why Tokyo? It's not for a case, is it? I have no problem with you solving cases here, but going to Tokyo seems a bit much for it, don't you think? Have you told your father about this?"

Hattori Heizo had been staying back late this past week, involved in a rather troubling case.

"Nah, no cases. I'm going to meet a detective."

"Detective?" Heizo asked as he stepped into the room.

"Oyaji!" Heiji looked up to see his father, "You're back early."

"Ah, finally closed the case. Besides, I hope you're not going to interfere in someone's work. Tokyo is not under my jurisdiction, it's not guaranteed you will be listened to."

Heiji scowled, "Are you telling me the only reason the police here listens to me is because I'm your son? And no, I'm not going to interfere anywhere. I'm going to meet the so called 'Detective of the East'. Kudo Shinichi."

Heizo hummed thoughtfully, accepting the bowl of rice from his wife, "I see. And no, you are a good enough detective to be respected for your own achievements. But ordering around the police is not something you could do in Tokyo. The officers here agree to follow your words because they know my son will not lead them astray. Tokyo's police doesn't know that."

 _'_ _Kudo's father isn't a police officer, yet he was respected enough to be called on as a consultant by that Inspector Megure. It's our skills that gain us respect, Oyaji. But, I guess, it's nice to hear you say that I'm a good enough detective…'_

"You're going this Friday then?" Heizo asked.

"Yeah,"

Heiji narrowed his eyes in thought, _'I'm going to find you Kudo, find where you've been hiding this past two months. And when I do, I'm going to see if you are actually worthy of being called my equal – my rival.'_

* * *

 **AN: So...How did you like it? Did do a good job at the background story?**

 **Please let me know your opinions and if I could make any improvements!**

 **REVIEW!**


	2. The Hunt for Kudo Shinichi

**AN: Since I had already written this chapter down, I'm posting it right away. Third chapter will be taking a bit longer to come out though.  
**

 **Enjoy!**

 **Read and Review!**

"Dialogues"

' _Thoughts'_

* * *

Chapter 2: The Hunt for Kudo Shinichi

* * *

His trip to Tokyo had been relatively uneventful if one disregarded the small case he stumbled into just before his train arrived. A break in at a liquor shop beside Naniwa Station, the owner had called out quite a crowd, making a scene about how one of them were responsible for the burglary.

It had taken Heiji twenty minutes to calm them down and get the story out of the distraught owner. Another fifteen minutes later he'd compared the stories of the suspects and quickly found out the perpetrator.

The guilty party had apparently made some not so savoury friends who'd made him pay back for the money he borrowed in the form of booze. The man was taken away by the local police, the officers giving him a small salute upon recognising him.

"There you go, Occhan," Heiji told the owner, "I'm off now, have to catch a train!"

"Wait! How can I thank you?"

"No need, I help because I can," he replied with a smile, "not for money or anything of the sort."

The owner had gone slightly starry eyed at that before pressing a bottle of Paikaru, securely wrapped in brown packaging, into his hands, "It's Chinese white liquor, Paikaru. Please take it as thanks!"

* * *

His first stop after arriving in Tokyo had been Teitan High School. As he did not know Kudo's residential address, the best thing to do would be check out the school. Besides, it didn't seem as if Friday was a holiday for them here.

When he reached the school, it seemed the students had been just let out.

Heiji hailed a nearby student, "Hey, do you know if Kudo Shinichi has come to school today?"

The guy blinked, "Kudo-senpai? Not sure. I don't think we've seen him this past month. If you've got a case for him, look up Kudo Residence in the phone book and give him a call. Or leave a message."

 _'_ _Man, Kudo certainly has the whole city's residents and their kids aware of his status as a detective if the first reason for me asking about him makes people think I want to hire him for a case._ ' Heiji shook his head, "Thanks. Which class is he in? I think I'll head there first."

The first year student shrugged, "If it suits you. Go to the second floor, 2-A. Ask anyone if you can't find it, everyone knows where Kudo-senpai's class is."

Heiji snorted to himself, yeah, that was true. It was quite similar to his situation in Osaka. While he got along well with his Kendo team-mates and the boys in his class, he was not very close to anyone apart from Kazuha. Most found his obviously high level of intelligence slightly intimidating and even irritating.

However, if anyone wanted to know about Hattori Heiji, the detective, there would be numerous people willing to give information – he was the pride of their school, after all.

* * *

"Kudo? No idea, he's not come to school this nearly two and half months. I had been hoping to persuade him to join the soccer club this year, but he's refused after middle school. Said he wanted to focus on his detective work," The guy – Nakamichi? – sighed despondently, "But if you want to know about his whereabouts, the best bet would be Mouri," – _'Mouri? As in Mouri Kogoro? A possible connection if Kudo knew the detective's kid'_ – "but since she's gone home already, you should ask Suzuki. She'll be in the Art Room."

Suzuki Sonoko turned out to be a brown-blonde haired girl, who from one glance, seemed to be from a wealthy family but had a pretty down-to-earth personality. But his initial assumptions about her being a close friend of Kudo went right out the window after talking to her.

"Shinichi-kun?" she asked bossily, hands on her hips, "Why do you want to know about him?"

' _Defensive. First name basis? Close friend? Better ask.'_ "You're a close friend of his?"

"Friend?" she huffed, "You could say so; we've known each other since we were kids – right pain in the ass he was. Don't know what Ran sees in him. He just up and left one fine day, never even called, making Ran worry. Who are you? He's not here to take a case. Leave a message on his phone if you're desperate."

 _'_ _Well, she certainly has a bone to pick with Kudo. And looks like he really did disappear all of a sudden. This is turning out to be a rather disturbing case…'_

"Who's Ran?"

"Mouri Ran," Suzuki smiled now, "My best friend. You might have heard about her father – Mouri Kogoro. He's turned out to be a rather well known detective recently."

"Key word: recently," Heiji muttered.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing. Anyway, could you give me his address?"

At that, she narrowed her eyes at him.

"Well, you don't look like a creep, so I'll give it to you. If you've come here all the way from Osaka, it must be something important. Still telling you, that detective idiot is not at home, you'd have better luck talking to Ran."

Heiji frowned, his accent was always a dead give-away of his native place, "Who is Ran to Kudo, by the way," accepting the paper she had scrawled his address and home number on.

"Ran? She's his girlfriend," Suzuki replied with a smirk, "Who are you again?"

' _Kudo has a girlfriend?'_ He shook his head and replied to Suzuki's last question.

"Hattori Heiji, detective."

* * *

Heiji first rang Kudo's home, if he was going to drop by uninvited, better to have at least called ahead. The dial tone went on for nearly a minute before –

"Hello, this is Kudo Shinichi, I'm not at home at the moment, please leave me a message after the beep…"

 _'_ _Huh, the answering machine. He certainly lives alone if the message speaks of himself as the only resident of the house.'_

Heiji took a while finding the right house, the many lanes and cross-roads confusing him. The Kudo house was certainly impressive. Three storeys high, a large front yard, and the tasteful décor that made it look like an old Victorian era home, certainly spoke of money.

"Well," Heiji muttered to himself, "what did I expect? His parents are famous and rich; of course they'd have such a house."

The Hattori's came from old money too, though their home was styled like those of old times with bamboo floors, tatami mats and shoji doors.

By the dust on the iron gates and lack of footprints leading up to the porch, it was quite clear that no one had entered the house in a long time. Heiji would have been lying if he said he didn't feel the slightest bit apprehensive about this whole thing. Till now, not a single thing pointed out to the fact that he was alive. The sudden disappearance, lack of phone calls, no mention of having seen him, empty house…it was as if he were dead. The house certainly looked as if it were haunted…

 _'_ _Nah, couldn't be,_ ' Heiji tried to console himself, _'Something would have come up in the news then. Or his parents would have mentioned it; the death of the son of such a famous couple couldn't go unnoticed, could it? On the other hand…his parents have been gone for nearly four years, would they even realise?'_

That was a morbid thought.

"Wait! His girlfriend! I still have to question her," Heiji twisted his baseball cap so that it faced ahead, "Off to the Mouri's then!"

* * *

Finding Mouri Detective Agency was the easy thing. Unlike Lane Two, where the houses mostly belonged to the wealthier part of society, Lane Five showed a distribution of middle class houses, cafes, general stores and the like.

Climbing up the stairs, he could hear the voice of a girl – she spoke softly, as if on the phone. He gave a couple of knocks, wondering how to tackle this situation. She was his girlfriend, so she would know if he was dead or not, wouldn't she? But talking about a loved one's death was never pleasant… Gah! Why was he thinking of that? Nothing was certain yet, there was no body mentioned, all things point out to his sudden disappearance, not death!

"Hello?" Mouri Ran welcomed him in with a smile.

She was a pretty girl, with a nice, soothing voice. Heiji briefly considered if he should speak with a sympathetic tone before deciding against it. If Kudo was dead, then he didn't want the girl to burst into tears in front of him. Better to be a bit brash and put them on the defensive –

"Do you know where Kudo is?"

"Excuse me?" Ran looked confused.

"Kudo Shinichi," Heiji reiterated, "where is he?"

"I don't know; he's been gone for a while now."

 _'_ _The hell, not even his girlfriend knew? But wait, she doesn't look worried or scared… So she knows but is not telling? Why?'_

"Are you hiding him?" Heiji asked with slight anger, here he was getting worried if the guy was dead and all everyone told him was 'they don't know!'

"No I'm not!" Ran said defensively, "Why would I?"

"You do know, don't you? Is he here?"

"I told you, I don't!"

"Ya shouldn't be lying, gal!" Uh-oh, his accent was becoming even more prominent, "Ah know he's here! Would 'ja bring 'im out? C'mon…bring out Kudo Shinichi already!"

"Huh?"

 _'_ _Huh? What kind of a response is that? Wait…who said that?'_

"Oh, you're back, Conan-kun!" Ran gave a small smile.

'Conan-kun' was a kid, about 5-6 years old, Heiji assumed, with huge squar-ish glasses on his face. Geez, what did the kid do to get those megane?

"Ac-chhoo!"

And, the kid's got a cold. Heiji had reached a dead end if not even Kudo's girlfriend could shed some light on his disappearance.

"Did you catch a cold too? First Shinichi, now you, Conan-kun…is there a cold going around?" Ran asked the kid, wiping his nose absently.

 _'_ _Wait, what? New data, at last!'_

"Kudo's got a cold?" Ran looked up at him as he spoke, "Why 'dya know Kudo's got a cold, but not where he is?"

"The phone!" Ran replied with annoyance, "I heard Shinichi's stuffed up voice over the phone –"

"Kudo called here?" he asked, cutting her off. He was alive then!

"Yes! Even after leaving for someplace suddenly, he still calls here once in a while. Any problem with that?"

 _'_ _Apparently, Suzuki was right. Mouri certainly seems to be his girlfriend if she is the only one who he calls. Everyone else seemed so uncertain about his whereabouts and existence.'_

"So the rumors that you were Kudo's girl was true…" Heiji muttered aloud.

"Girl! Who said that?!" Ran seemed shocked, and actually, so did the kid.

Heiji smirked, _'Lil' bro can't handle his big sis in a relationship?'_

"Your friend, Suzuki," Heiji told her, "She said he wasn't coming to school and that you might be hiding him somewhere." _'Well, she hadn't said that last thing, but let's see her reaction to it…'_

Mouri Ran said nothing in reply to it, her face slowly reddening – in anger?

"So," Heiji asked, "What did you talk to Kudo about on the phone?"

"Nothing special," Ran shrugged, "the new mystery novel he's reading, how the J-League's doing, how people form school are doing…"

 _'_ _Hmm, nothing out of the ordinary. Doesn't look like he's in any kind of danger. It's like a normal phone conversation. Wait…!'_

"That's all?" Heiji asked her.

"Yes," Ran huffed, "Shinichi never said anything about a weird boy speaking kansai-ben!"

 _'_ _That's not what I meant, stupid girl!'_ Heiji frowned, "What about you?"

"Huh? What about me?"

"Doesn't he usually ask, 'How are ya doin' and stuff?"

Ran became slightly ponderous at that, "Now that you mention it, Shinichi always talks about himself, he never asks about me…"

 _'_ _Doesn't ask about his girlfriend he's not seen in two months? That's odd…Does that mean he's watching over her? She was on the phone when I came; if that was Kudo, then he might still be nearby!'_

He ran to the window and pushed it open, looking about for a teenager that might match Kudo's height. A quick look served to no benefit though.

"Huh?"

"Wait!"

"H-Hey!" Ah, looks like the dozing Mouri senior had gotten up finally, how did he ever become famous as a genius detective?

"What are you doing?" Ran questioned him angrily.

He disregarded that for the moment, "Don'cha find it odd?"

"Huh?"

"If he calls you once in a while, it means he at least cares about you somewhat,"

 _'_ _The girlfriend theory was hazy at this piont, Suzuki's word alone couldn't be trusted and she doesn't act like his girlfriend…close friend may be. First name basis though…childhood friends like him and Kazuha?'_

"Don't you find it odd," Heiji continued, "that he doesn't ask how you're doing? Especially if he's gone far away and won't see you soon." He turned to see three surprised and confused faces, "There's just one reason he doesn't ask, Kudo's been watching you! From somewhere close!"

That turned Ran's face red rather quickly and she pushed him out of the way as she peered out the window, "From where?"

Heiji smirked, feeling in the mood to cause some mischief all of a sudden, "Probably spying on ya! He's a dirty one!"

Then realising an important thing, "Oh yeah, guess I forgot to tell ya…the name's Hattori Heiji. I'm a high school detective, like Kudo."

He took off his cap in flourish, thoroughly shocking the Mouri's.

"High school detective!?"

"Ac-chhoo!"

Heiji frowned at the kid, _'Way to ruin the climax,'_ before grinning.

"Hey, kid, I got some good stuff for that cold of yours," Heiji beckoned the child, pulling out the packaged Paikaru and pouring out a mouthful into a glass kept on the table.

"Oh, that's right," Mouri Kogoro was saying, "I'd heard about a skilled young detective in Kansai…"

 _'_ _I knew policemen gossiped like housewives!'_ Heiji hummed, "Yup, with Kudo they called us Hattori of the West and Kudo of the East. Always got compared to him –"

"Here!" he handed the glass to Conan-kun.

"Oh, thanks," the boy accepted it, taking a gulp.

" – haven't heard a peep outta Kudo lately," Heiji told Mouri, "Plus he ain't been in the papers. Rumor says he's gone missing…"

"Well," Mouri pointed to himself, "Now it's the Eastern Mouri Ko –"

"So?" Ran overrode her father, "What do you want with Shinichi?"

"Nothing," Heiji shrugged, "Just wanna meet him and see…if Kudo Shinichi's really the type of guy who can play my type of game. To confirm if he's good enough to be compared ta me!"

"Gmuh?!" The kid let out a dizzy sound.

And Ran's piercing gaze left him to focus on Conan, "Conan-kun?"

"Hic! Haa~ Hic!"

Conan swayed about a bit before steadying.

"Wait a minutue! What did you give to him?" Ran asked him with alarm.

"Paikaru! Chinese white liquor." Heiji peeled off the rest of the wrapping and presented it to Mouri, "Oh yeah, you can have this! You'll probably want this until Kudo gets back."

Mouri blinked, accepting it wordlessly.

"What do you think you're…" Oh, it seemed as if Ran had picked up on the subtle insult.

Knock! Knock!

"How many times do you think I rang the doorbell?" A tall, thin woman, dressed up in a coat and sun glasses stood at the door. "I suppose you don't bother greeting clients here…"

* * *

Tsujimura Kimie, aged fifty, was the wife of a diplomat, Tsujimura Isao. She wanted to conduct a background and behaviour investigation on her son's girlfriend.

Mouri flipped through the personal history of the woman, "Katsuragi Yukiko-san, age twenty-four, graduated from middle and high school with top grades; studying at Tokyo Medical University, soon to be a successful doctor…you have a complaint with this?"

"No," Tsujimura Kimie declined, "I don't have any complaints, I just…"

"You don't like how she's too perfect," Heiji spoke up from where he was lounging on the old man's chair behind the desk.

"What?" Mouri looked at him in slight surprise.

"All humans are naturally suspicious and jealous creatures," Heiji explained, _'how did the man become a famous detective again? This was Psychology 101!'_ , "see something perfect, and they try to find a flaw…is that right, lady?"

 _'_ _In a way, that's what I am doing. Mouri Kogoro's sudden rise to fame was suspicious enough that I came all the way to Tokyo to check it out.'_

"T-This boy?" Tsujimura pointed towards him in slight surprise.

"Ah," Mouri made a shoo-ing gesture with his hand at him, "my daughter's friend."

"Anyway!" Tsujimura continued, "You can come to my house and talk with my husband about the details."

"We're leaving right now?" Mouri asked her, "You could have both come here and saved yourself some time –"

Tsujimura tsked, "As I told you before, my husband is a diplomat and if he were seen entering this place…"

"There would be a scandal," Heiji finished her sentence, getting up from his seat, "I guess I should go too, then,"

"What?" Two adults asked in tandem.

"A little less suspicious if they see father and son going than a single man, right?" Heiji reasoned.

"…you're right, please do," Tsujimura consented.

"M-ma'am?" Mouri looked astonished.

Heiji turned towards Ran, "Wanna come too?"

"W-why, me?"

"The more the merrier, right?" Heiji grinned, "And…ya never know when Kudo might poke his face around."

"Come on, Ran-nee-chan, let's go too!" Conan piped up.

Ah, Heiji had almost forgotten about the kid.

"Conan-kun, what about your cold?" Ran asked him.

"His medicine helped me feel better!" Conan chirped, pointing towards Heiji.

 _'_ _It did? I'm surprised!'_ Out loud, he said, "See?"

Apparently the kid's word meant a lot, because Ran was all ready to leave then. Heiji didn't know Mouri Kogoro had a son. They didn't look alike for certain, and even the naming sense was screwed. Naming his daughter after a flower (Orchid) and his son after – what? An author? Hmm, perhaps a nephew?

* * *

The Tsujimura house was grand. The butler, Koike Fumio, greeted them at the door. Tsujimura announced them to be family friends and led them up the stairway.

There was brief argument with the girlfriend, who'd apparently been invited by the son, Tsujimura Takayoshi.

"Dad won't see Yukiko, so I was going to force him to meet her. But he hasn't come out of his study room yet…"

And they even met Tsujimura Toshimitsu, the father of the household as he descended the stairs. He seemed quite enthusiastic about showing them a print of the big fish he'd caught recently.

When they reached the study, it was locked.

"Dear, we're here! Dear?" Tsujimura pulled out her keys, "Oh, is he not here?"

The diplomat was seated at his desk, a huge stack of books placed in front of him and loud opera music playing from the music box. He was asleep.

Heiji and Conan went over to check the music while the Mouri's hovered near the entrance. The wife went over to her husband, shaking him gently to wake him up.

"Anata! Wake up! Wake –"

Thud!

The master of the house, Tsujimura Isao, fell from his chair and collapsed on the floor, dead.

* * *

As Mouri went to call the police, strictly ordering the rest of the house hold to stay out of the room, Heiji quickly catalogued everything with single-minded focus.

 _'_ _Body's still warm and his lips have begun to turn purple. Aa, there's a small red point at the base of his hair. A pin-prick? Murder by poison, then? If so, then it should be here…'_

Thud!

"That hurt!" Heiji rubbed his forehead that had come into sudden contact with the kids'.

What was the brat doing over here? This man had just died and there was a poisoned pin around here somewhere!

"Quit wandering around, kid!" Heiji said with slight anger, picking up the boy by his jacket and handing him over to Ran.

"Conan-kun!" Ran protested against his rough handling.

"Can't 'cha look after him for a minute or something?" Heiji watched as the kid clung to the girl, "Corpses aren't the kinda thing ya show ta kids!"

"O-okay," Ran acquiesced.

Heiji stood by silently when the police came and commenced their investigation. This was Tokyo after all, not Osaka. He could respect the fact that this was not his jurisdiction; he was only a guest here.

The Inspector, whom Heiji recognised to be Megure, conducted the preliminary investigation before the coroners arrived and took charge. He got the story out of Kimie, the wife, before turning to Mouri.

"…and the detective who was hired by Kimie-san and just so happened to run across the body was," Megure began in an exasperated tone.

"Me! Mouri Kogoro, Inspector Megure, sir!" Mouri pointed to himself with a half laugh.

"So, is it another murder today, Mr Detective?" Megure asked him.

 _'_ _Another murder?'_ Heiji wondered, ' _Does that mean he stumbles into such cases often? Must be so, his regular appearance in the paper indicates that. Just like a certain detective used to…'_

"Nah! There are no exterior wounds. Could be a natural dea –"

"That's not right," Conan spoke up.

Heiji, meanwhile, was astounded at the detective's ignorance that he missed out most of the words said by the young child.

"Huh?" Mouri looked at his young charge in annoyance.

"Look closely at the body! That was a –"

"A poisoning!" Heiji proclaimed suddenly, no longer able to keep quiet and leave the case to the Tokyo police force.

"Yeah, a poison –" Conan repeated before stopping in surprise, "Huh?"

Heiji ignored the brat, "Someone poisoned this guy. Ya can't tell unless ya check really hard, but there's a tiny red dot at the base of his hairline…and there was a mighty suspicious needle lying around on the ground. He could have killed himself, but he died with his head resting on his hand and nobody would stab themselves with a needle in that position,"

He looked up at the Inspector and Detective Mouri, "It's easy to assume somebody stabbed him with a needle and then put his body into that position."

Mouri scowled at him, "How can you say it's poisoning just from that?"

Heiji looked at him with slight irritation, "Don'cha know nothin'? Look at the body! His lips and limbs have turned purple and the capillaries in his eyes have burst. Proof of death by suffocation!"

Heiji turned to the Inspector then, "He doesn't appear to have been strangled or drowned and the body shows no sign of pain or agony. The only possibility left is that a poison paralysed his muscles and forced suffocation. A very virulent poison that can kill in seconds!"

Now even Ran was looking at him in astonishment, "When you factor in the body's warmth and lack of rigor mortis, we can assume that this body was discovered within thirty minutes of death…which means someone killed him less than thirty minutes before we entered this room. Someone in this house!"

Megure immediately turned towards the coroners, "Is this true?"

The coroners agreed and repeated exactly what Heiji had proclaimed minutes ago.

"W-who is that boy?" Megure asked in surprise.

"Just some punk kid detective called Hattori Heiji or something," replied Mouri with slight frustration.

It was a moment later that it clicked, "Y-you're him!"

Heiji was pleased that he was recognised –

"You are the son of Hattori Heizo, Head of Police in Osaka!"

– Or not. Could they not know him as something other than 'Son of Hattori Heizo'?

"Head of Police in Osaka!" Mouri uttered in disbelief.

"My Dad has nothing to do with this!" Heiji said crossly, was it too much to ask to be recognised for himself? Changing the subject, he said, "There's still a chance this could have been an outsider. Shouldn't we check to make sure there's no sign of forced entry?"

"Oh, you're right," Megure quickly ordered the search.

Heiji noticed just then how Ran was looking at him with slight nostalgia. ' _Do my methods remind you of Kudo? If all goes like it usually does, Kudo might make an appearance to help Mouri-tantei with the case and then I might see for myself – the detective they call the Heisei Holmes!'_

"Ac-chhoo!"

 _'_ _Darn! That kid again! Wasn't his cold almost healed?_ ' Heiji watched Ran as she fussed over her little brother, momentarily distracted from his thoughts about Kudo.

The brat was cute in a way, now that Heiji actually looked at him…and smart. Wasn't the kid the one who'd first cried out 'That's not right!' when Mouri proposed his theory of natural death?

Heiji looked back to the Inspector when he spoke, "Madam, how many keys are there to this room?"

"Two," Kimie-san replied, "One is with me and the other with my husband. He usually has it in his trouser pocket."

Megure bent down next to the body to check the pockets. He put his hand in to turn out the pockets, a small clunk sounding when the key slid out of its confines of the inner pocket and landed on the floor.

 _'_ _What!'_

"What the –?" Megure was equally shocked.

"What is it?" Mouri questioned naively.

"Don'cha get it?" Heiji snapped at the man, "The door was locked when we came here. That means the killer locked the room when he or she left it. One key was with Kimie-san which she used to enter with us and the remaining one was found within the secret inner pocket of her husband's pants!"

Heiji got up from his crouch next to the body, "This is a completely impossible crime! A locked room murder!"

"A locked room murder!" The residents of the house repeated in shock, understanding the unfeasibility of the crime.

"T-that can't be…" Mouri said as he caught up to the situation.

 _'_ _Just as I thought! All those things they print in the newspaper aren't his work. It's Kudo Shinichi's! He's the one solving those complex cases._ ' Heiji smirked _, 'The old man's probably in touch with Kudo and gets help in secret. The old man knows about his daughter's' talks with Kudo, who's to say he doesn't keep contact with him too? Most likely he'll do the same for this case too!'_

Heiji finally had the chance to see his rival's deductive abilities. He'll be able to see if he was actually worthy of the title of Modern Holmes. _'Perfect! We'll see who can solve this locked room murder first. Kudo Shinichi or me!'_

Looking at the inspector and Mouri mutter to themselves, Heiji sighed, "Shouldn't you be checking out everyone's alibis around half an hour before the murder?"

"Ah – yeah, of course!" Megure said before turning to Mouri, "Don't lose Mouri!"

"Huh?" Mouri questioned the non-sequitur.

"We don't want some out of town kid to show us up!" Megure patted his shoulders reassuringly, "Just give me the usual, detective!"

Heiji snorted inwardly as he heard the conversation, _'The usual? That's not Mouri, that's Kudo! And if the Inspector's hoping for a deduction reasoning showdown between the East and West too, I can't disappoint!'_

The inspector began the questioning and all Heiji gleaned from it was that the son and his girlfriend and the father were the only ones near the victim at the time of his death. The butler was conversing with the neighbours the whole time and the wife had been with them.

"Oh, he has quite the collection of CD's here!" Megure noted.

"Aa, the master was quite fond of classical music," the butler spoke fondly.

Conan meanwhile, was surprised, _'Classical music? Wasn't it an opera that was playing when we arrived?'_

"Huh? What's this picture?" Megure picked up a frame from a shelf.

Heiji gave a tiny glance at it as Kimie-san replied, "My husband and I when we were young. It doesn't matter, right? It's from twenty years ago, after all,"

"Ah, of course," Megure placed it back.

"What shall we do of this stack of books, sir?" An officer asked Megure.

"Leave it as it is," the Inspector replied.

Conan had barely been able to see the photo clearly when his attention was diverted to the pile of books, _'Oh yeah, and this pile of books that were next to the body for no rhyme or reason…like they were just yanked out of the book case and place atop the desk.'_

"Sir, this key-chain splits open in the middle," a forensic investigator called out to Megure, "See? It has a bit of cellophane tape stuck on the inside too!"

Heiji's eyes widened, _'What's that little fold in the middle?'_

"Let me see too!" The kid called out suddenly.

"No, you can't! Don't bother Hattori-kun!" Ran pulled him back.

Heiji was too busy thinking of something to truly pay attention to them.

"So…any brilliant insights yet, detective?" Megure looked at Mouri expectantly.

"Ah, no. None." Mouri shook his head.

' _Wait!'_ Heiji thought, ' _This just gave me an idea!'_

Two simultaneous thoughts spun in the minds of the two detectives,

 _'_ _The cellophane tape…the crease in the middle…the space beneath the door…that's it! I've got it!'_ Heiji gave a triumphant smirk as he rushed out of the room.

 _'_ _The key-chain that splits open…stack of books…opera…I know it! The trick behind this locked room murder!'_ Conan's eyes widened in realisation just as his heart gave an extra powerful and painful thump inside his chest.

Conan swayed, head heavy, limbs aching, as his body finally gave out and fell to the floor.

* * *

 **AN: It's good to know people are liking the story!  
**

 **Rockster: Heiji is going to be informal, it is just that while in Osaka, as he was for the first chapter, his dialect would appear normal to him. When I show him in Tokyo I will expound on the fact that he has an accent. And I've added a reason for the Paikaru incident here, hope it satisfies you :) Thanks for reviewing!**

 **REVIEW!**


	3. Only One Truth

**AN: Okay, the third chapter came out faster than I thought, but don't expect the same for chapter four! That will take longer. College...exams...basically life is catching up with me.**

 **Till then - Enjoy!**

 **Please Review! :)**

 **(If I ask enough times, will you all actually review? :/)**

"Dialogues"

' _Thoughts'_

* * *

Chapter 3: Only One Truth

* * *

Searching the guest room took mere minutes. Soon Heiji had found what he had been looking for: a rolled up piece of string.

 _'This is it! I've won this round…Kudo!'_

He re-entered the study just as Ran was carrying Conan out.

"Hattori-kun?" Ran questioned his triumphant expression.

Heiji gave her a grin, "I've got it. I figured out the trick of the crime and also the murderer."

"What!?"

"Really!"

"Solved already?" Mouri asked, surprised.

"No thanks to you!" Megure told him, annoyed.

Heiji walked into the room calmly, "I'll show ya all the proof right now. Inspector, if ya'd be so kind ta play the part of the victim?"

Heiji began with repeating the circumstances of the murder. Then producing the string, he proceeded to show them how it could be threaded through the pocket of the trousers and then pulled underneath the door. Then locking it and pulling the thread to return the key into the pocket, he finished his show.

Megure had at first looked slightly bored, as if only humouring him for the time being. However, at the end, his face had transformed into one of amazement.

Heiji grinned, _'How was that, Kudo? That was my deduction…if you have any complaints with it, you better show yourself quick! Or else…this case is mine!'_

"And the killer?" asked Megure eagerly.

"Who's the killer?" Mouri questioned.

"Wait a minute!" Heiji simply looked at them, his gaze lingering a while on Mouri, _'What's wrong, Kudo? Is the game called off, then?'_ It truly seemed as if Kudo would not be making an appearance, _'Fine, it doesn't matter…'_

Taking a deep breath, Heiji began, "First, to rehash the facts: the time of death was 30 minutes between 3:30 and 4:00. It would take at least 5 to 6 minutes to kill and complete this trick. The wife came with us at 4:00, so she is in the clear. The butler was talking to the neighbours the entire time, so he's in the clear too. The son and his girlfriend seem a bit fishy. They came before we did and could have done it but could have been with the victim for barely 2 minutes."

The wife, butler, son, and girlfriend slowly began relaxing at his words.

"Which means, it was the guy who was here since two o'clock, watching T.V. in the room next to the study. It was you, old gramps!"

"What?" Tsujimura Toshimitsu let out a surprised exclamation, completely unprepared to be accused in such a manner.

"The proof," Heiji ploughed on, "is this string and needle I found in the guest room! The string is a special catgut fishing wire, thin and strong…you're a fisherman, aren't ya? You were showing around that fish print ta everyone. Ya can't deny ya don't know what this is!"

Turning to Kimie-san, Heiji continued, "The lady even told ya ta go wait in da guest room when we came. You must have bin plannin' yer perfect crime all the while! This fishing wire I found in the trash can is undeniably yours!"

The door suddenly banged open, revealing a panicked, worried Ran. "I'm sorry; did Conan-kun come in here? I can't find him!"

Heiji paid her no attention, focusing on the shocked elderly in front of him, "Well, am I wrong? Old man?!"

Toshimitsu-san sighed, "Hmm, looks like I can't do evil after all…it was me…"

The other members of the household were shocked at his confession.

Heiji, on the other hand, had a single thought, _'I've won!'_ Kudo had not appeared and he'd already solved the case. The famed Great Detective of the East had not been able to measure up to him, in the end… _'I've won, Kudo!'_

"I was the one," Toshimitsu-san exhaled sadly, "who killed my son,"

"No…" A rattling breath, "That's not right!"

A gasp from Ran, the Inspector's widened eyes, Mouri's disbelief…and most of all, Heiji's astonishment. For the person at the doorway could only be –

"K-Kudo!" Three voices called out simultaneously.

Ran's thoughts held only one name, repeating itself as if in prayer, _'Shinichi! Shinichi…Shinichi…Shinichi…'_

Then she burst out in anger as a few tears slipped down her cheeks, "Where were you? Just when I'd thought you had left for good, you show up like this! I – I – I was so worried!"

"Quit crying, you idiot," Shinichi admonished her gently, taking in a few laboured breaths.

"Why should I?" Ran sniffed stubbornly, discreetly wiping away a few errant tears.

"She's right," Heiji spoke up, having recovered from his surprise at actually seeing Kudo, "What's with this, 'You're wrong' business?" Well, Kudo had not said it that way, but it was clear that it was implied, "Ya sayin' my hypothesis is incorrect?"

Kudo seemed to ignore his words, talking softly to Ran, "Just wait a bit, Ran…" He took a few more breaths before walking inside the room, "Soon…all this will come to an end…"

Heiji frowned, conducting a preliminary evaluation of the other detective, _'Sweating, laboured breaths, unsteady on his feet…did he run to this place? Why? And…is that coat a size too large?'_

"Well," Heiji questioned him, "where's my answer, Kudo?"

"Right here," Kudo threw a smirk in their direction, unsettling both detectives and the Inspector, "that empty theory about that trick you spouted…does not work! In fact, it is 100% impossible!"

Heiji's eyes widened in shock and asked him shakily "W-why is that?"

"Wait a bit, Kudo-kun," Megure found his voice, "I'm sorry to interrupt, but his theory about the trick is absolutely perfect! We carried it out just now –"

While Heiji was appeased at the Inspectors' defence, it still shook him that his Eastern counterpart had so completely disregarded his deduction.

 _'Who is Kudo to suddenly appear and claim that my theory was 100% impossible?'_ Heiji did not know why he felt so offended, this was not the first time he had not been believed.

He'd had to prove his deductive abilities many times in Osaka before the police had started trusting him implicitly, but this was certainly the first time he was looking for approval. And that too from another teenage detective! Perhaps…it was _because_ Kudo was a teenage detective? He wanted Kudo to acknowledge him as an equal, because they were in the same position – Young, in high school, with an unusually high IQ and detectives in profession. They were so alike, yet still somewhat different.

Where he'd had to work to be known as a competent detective, always overshadowed by his father's many achievements, and been recognised due to his connection with the Head of Osaka Police – 'Son of Hattori Heizo' – Kudo had had no influence in the police force. But, he had still made a name for himself, gaining the police's respect and Inspector Megure's admiration to an extent that he was often called in as a consultant.

In a way, reading and following Kudo's cases through the newspapers, Heiji had grown to admire him. Kudo had been talked about enough in the police station that it had made him wonder – just how good was this detective? Even his own father, the Superintendent, had praised him – or so he'd heard from one of the junior officers – calling him 'A very smart young lad,' and saying that 'Tokyo Police has a good reason to trust him.'

Heiji would probably never admit it, but it had given him a slight complex. And he'd been gripped with the sudden desire to know, just how much of an equal standing were they on? After all he'd said about seeing whether Kudo was good enough to be compared to him, he'd had a small niggling doubt in the back of his mind – was he, Hattori Heiji, good enough to be compared to the Heisei Holmes?

Megure had finished explaining Heiji's reproduction of the trick while the Osakan detective was lost in his thoughts.

"Is the key really in there?" Kudo asked, referring to Megure's pocket.

"Yes…" Megure wondered at the question, _'Why wouldn't the key be there?'_

"They said that the key was in the inner pocket of the victims pants," Kudo repeated, raising an eyebrow.

Heiji gave a low growl, _'Is Kudo mocking us – me?_ ' "Of course! 'Coz I put the needle through the inner pocket too!"

Heiji put his hands into the Inspector's trouser pocket, mentally apologising for his rude actions, "Look at this if you think I'm lying. See? It's inside the inner –"

Clunk!

The key that was inside the main pocket, fell to the ground making a small jingling sound.

"What?" Heiji exclaimed, "H-how can that be? I put the needle through the inner pocket! So why wasn't the key in it?"

Kudo looked straight at Heiji, "Because the Inspector was sitting when you did it!"

"What?" Heiji did not follow, what was Kudo trying to say?

"When sitting down, the pocket is creased, which made it harder for the key to enter. Thus, the wire came off the tape before it entered the inner pocket! This is even more true when the victim has a large build like Inspector Megure!"

"That's true…" Megure said, "I remember the victim's pants being rather tight when I checked them,"

Kudo panted slightly as he asked Heiji, "Remember! Which way was the key facing when it came out of the victim's pocket?"

"W-which way?" Heiji repeated before it struck him. _'The key was pointing inwards, both the key holder and key together.'_

Kudo nodded at his enlightened expression, "That's right! Even if the key managed to enter the inner pocket, it would only be the key holder that you threaded the needle through. There's no way both the key and key holder would fit into that pocket using that method!"

Kudo looked about the room before staring at Heiji, "So if it was firmly in the pocket that means the killer put the key in there beforehand! They also created the small fold in the tape on the key holder, all to make it look as if that trick had been done."

"Well, then what about this?" Heiji knew he was grasping at straws now, not wanting to believe everything had been set up, not wanting believe he'd been completely wrong despite the evidence that pointed out the truth in Kudo's words, "What about this wire and needle I found in the guest room?"

"That was to make it look as if the old man was the killer," Kudo gave a small cough.

"Bull!" Heiji's voice rose, "What about when he passed by the lady on the stairs and she just happened to tell him to go to the guest room? You mean that had been done ahead of time?"

It couldn't have been, no one could have known where the old gramps could have been!

"Yes, exactly! As for proof," Kudo pulled out a bunch of strings and needles from his pocket, "I found five or six of the same things all around the house,"

"What!" Heiji couldn't believe it, the lengths the killer had gone to!

"The killer had other rooms beside the guest room trapped," Kudo continued, "so it didn't matter were the old man was at when it happened…"

Heiji then asked him the most important thing, "Then…why did he admit to doing the murder?"

"Because he purposefully fell into the killer's trap," here Kudo gave a glance back at the old man, "though for what reason? – I don't know…"

Kudo had successfully negated his whole theory; however that didn't mean they knew what the actual method of murder was. Or the identity of the murderer either.

"Then how did the killer escape from this room?" Heiji asked him angrily, unable to see the truth, "Don't tell it was suicide!" Because if Kudo actually said that –

"No…it was not suicide," Kudo replied calmly, "and there still are clues to the murderer's real trick. The trick the killer used to create this locked room murder…"

"The real trick?" So there was another trick?

"Have you forgotten? The opera that was playing when we arrived at the scene and the stack of books on the desk in front of the victim?"

Heiji was too preoccupied listening to Kudo's explanation that he missed a very fundamental error in his speech, _'…when_ we _arrived at the scene…'_

"The opera was put on so that any noises made by the victim while he was being poisoned would be muffled and the books were meant block the victim's possibly pained face…"

"Haahaa…hahaha…"Heiji's laughter was slightly hysterical _, 'What was Kudo even talking about? Opera? Books? How were they even related to the case?'_ "There's no way! Whose eyes and ears would the killer have to fool? Tell me, whose? Huh? Whose?"

Nothing could have prepared Heiji for the answer Kudo gave him.

"The answer, Hattori," Kudo bowed his head slightly, taking a deep breath before looking Heiji in the eye, "is yours!"

' _What!'_ That collective thought rang in everyone's mind at Kudo's response.

Kudo sighed and looked at the others "Not just Hattori…neither Ran nor Kogoro-san who entered the study at the same time, noticed. Because the murder took place right before their eyes!"

"Right before our eyes!" Ran repeated in shock.

Heiji's eyes widened as he connected the dots, was Kudo actually saying that… "T-then, you mean - !"

"Yes," Kudo agreed, "the killer, who entered the study and went straight to the victim and poisoned him, is you ma'am! Tsujimura Kimie-san!"

"The Madam killed the Master…!" The butler was in shock.

"N-no!" Katsuragi Yukiko, the girlfriend, uttered in a broken voice.

"So," Mouri started, "you mean that the victim was still alive at that time?"

"Yes," Kudo replied, "he was probably just sleeping due to some sedative his wife had slipped him. Then she stabbed him with the poisoned needle while pretending to wake him."

"But," Megure tried to reason, "if we'd discovered the sedative in later tests, the whole trick would have –"

" _Not_ been revealed!" Heiji had finally gathered his wits and composed himself, "We figured he'd been dead before we even got to the room, so we'd have thought that it was used to stab him without resistance. Basically she'd brought a detective here on purpose, trying to create a blind spot as we'd believe he wasn't killed before our eyes – before a detective's eyes! A psychological locked room murder!"

Heiji turned to look at Kudo, "Izzat what you're trying ta say, Kudo?"

Kudo gave Heiji a grin, "Yeah…"

"So?" Heiji asked, wanting to know how the murder had actually been done, "Where's the proof? She didn't seem ta be holding a poisoned needle at the time!"

Kudo bent down to pick up the victim's fallen key, "Ah, that's because when she entered the room, she took out the needle unnoticed," he brandished the key holder, "along with her key!"

"The key?" Heiji wondered at the possibility of that.

Kudo smirked at Heiji's incredulous stare, "The key holder for the key Kimie-san carried is of the same design as the victims'. That means it must split open in two as well!"

Inspector Megure quickly checked it and found that to be true. There was a tiny groove in the middle which Kudo theorised to have held the poisoned needle.

"In other words, the groove in her key holder, is perfect proof that she is the murderer," Kudo proclaimed.

"But…why?" Megure asked his pseudo-nephew, wanting to know the reason, "Why would she kill her own husband?"

That was something Heiji was wondering as well. What was the motive?

"If my hunch is correct," Kudo suddenly walked towards the shelves, picking up a photo frame, "the motive probably lies in this photograph."

Heiji went over to Megure as he held the frame, "This is an old photo of hers from when she was young…"

"Look closely, Megure-keibu," Kudo urged him, "Does she look familiar to you?"

Heiji realised it just before Megure exclaimed loudly, "She's the spitting image of Yukiko-san!"

The son, Takayoshi-san, was surprised. However, it was true. Apart from the hair colour, a younger Kimie-san looked exactly like Yukiko-san.

At that, Kimie-san broke down, confessing that she was Yukiko's biological mother and had married Tsujimura Isao when her last husband was framed and ejected from society for corruption by her current husband. She had known nothing of Isao's manipulation to marry her and send her ex-husband to prison.

She had realised the truth when Takayoshi had brought a picture of his girlfriend to them and he'd immediately recognised her as his current wife's daughter. Enraged and afraid, he'd unknowingly spoken about the truth of the events that had taken place 20 years ago.

As she was being led away by the police, she had a last plea for her step-son, "I know I've no right to say this, but…please take care of Yukiko."

* * *

The case over and done with, the police began their preparations to leave the scene.

Cough! Cough!

Kudo put a hand against the wall for support as he coughed violently, another hand pressed against his mouth in a desperate attempt to smother them.

"Hey, Kudo!"

"Shinichi!"

Ran and Heiji called out to him in worry.

"Are you okay, Shinichi?" Ran asked carefully.

"Yeah," Kudo rested his back against the wall, "just got a bit of a cold,"

Suddenly realising something important, Heiji asked him, "But how'd ya know about all the details so well? Ya must have been watching from close by…"

"I got a call from the kid with glasses, idiot," Kudo scoffed at Heiji's theory of 'watching from close by', "he said some weird detective from Osaka came and that I needed to show up quickly. So I wrapped up the case I was handling and rode the train here…"

 _'Believable,'_ Heiji mused, ' _but why do I think that it's not the whole story?'_

"Liar!" Ran shouted abruptly.

"Huh?" Kudo looked surprised at her outburst.

"He told me," Ran pointed at Heiji, "that it's odd how you never ask me 'How are you doing?' over the phone!"

 _'Whoa! Don't bring me into this lovers spat!'_ Heiji felt slight discomfort as Kudo gave him a startled glance at Ran's words.

Ran's eyes began to tear up, causing both males to shift uncomfortably, "You've actually been close by, haven't you? You've been nearby, laughing at me while I worry about you!"

There was such hope in her voice, that it was palpable. Under the anger she felt at Shinichi's disappearance, there was a budding hope that he'd not really gone away to some far-away place.

Heiji stood silently, bearing witness to the unfolding scene, knowing that he was partly to blame for giving her that hope.

"Whoa! Ran…" Kudo started helplessly,

"Why would you do that?" There was so much pain in Ran's voice that Heiji had to look away, "Can't you see…I mean…Look how much I…"

Kudo looked sad, unfathomable anguish clouding his face for a scarce few moments before turning blank and then apologetic before settling into a smirk. Heiji would have thought he'd imagined it all, but it had been there and he'd no idea why.

"Give me a break," Kudo huffed, his voice firm and soothing all at once, "I'm a detective, remember? I can tell how you are, just by hearing your voice…"

 _'Bull!'_ thought Heiji, unable contain the small smile that stretched across his lips at Kudo's words, _'But they certainly did its job. Ran-san doesn't look as if she's going to burst into tears anymore,'_

And then Kudo's body began shaking again, hand once more pressed against his mouth to muffle his coughs.

"Shinichi!" Ran caught hold of him to steady him before pulling back, "Just wait here! I'll get the doctor!"

She ran off, leaving Heiji alone with Kudo. Heiji sighed for a moment before facing his rival,

"Man, so I was off all along, since the beginning…" Heiji proffered a depreciative smile before grinning sportingly, "Well, I've completely lost this round! You're damn good Kudo! Your deduction was superior to mine –"

"Idiot!" Kudo cut him off, panting heavily, "Deduction isn't about winning or losing. There is no superior or inferior…that's because…there is…only one truth!"

Those words stunned Heiji for a moment. He gave a tiny laugh then, tinged with – relief? Contentment? He himself didn't know…

"You're right," Heiji smiled, a true and pure smile, unlike any of his superior smirks or knowing grins, "I was too set on this being a match and all, I couldn't think right –"

He faltered when he saw Kudo grip his shirt, right above his heart and coughed a bit more.

"Hey, Kudo, is that really just a cold?" Heiji asked in worry, but all he received was a pained grunt as the detective slipped to the floor on his knees, "Kudo?!"

 _'Think, Heiji!'_ Heiji urged himself, _'What are the symptoms? Laboured breaths…excessive sweating – elevated temperature? Fever, then? Coughs…fatigue…possible muscle ache…what is wrong with him? I'm no doctor but even I can see that this is not normal!'_

For a moment, Kudo seemed to still, but his face expressed unbearable pain. Then against all rational thought, he got up and started towards the door.

"Hey! Kudo!" Where the hell was he going?

"Kudo?" Heiji debated going after him, but Ran's appearance with the doctor halted that thought.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, when he'd finished giving his statements to the police, Heiji saw Ran and the kid, Conan-kun. But no Kudo.

"Megure-keibu," Ran addressed the Inspector, "Shinichi wanted you to know that you should keep his involvement a secret – that no one should know he was here."

Heiji blinked, confused at the odd request, but watched as the Inspector readily agreed with a mere, "If Kudo-kun says so,"

Heiji agreed to do the same when Ran repeated Shinichi's request.

"So, how's the kid?" Heiji nodded at the sleeping form of Conan that Ran carried in her arms.

"Much better," she smiled at him, "He's sleeping now and the doctor's also had a look at him. It was just a cold, nothing much to worry about. And Hattori-kun, it's late, why don't you come home with us today? You can take the sofa in the living room for the night and leave next day."

"Ah," Heiji scratched at his head, "I wouldn't wanna impose and I did barge into yer house suddenly today…"

"Oh no!" Ran insisted, "It's no problem! And…I somehow feel that if you hadn't come, I would not have had the chance to see Shinichi so soon. So…please stay!"

Heiji couldn't say no to that, "I think I will. The last train back would have already gone by now, might as well accept the free boarding," he grinned at the girl, "Thanks Ran-san!"

"Huh? Did I hear that right?" Mouri suddenly asked, "This brat's coming back with us?"

"Yup!" Heiji grinned at the detective, "Thanks for having me, Occhan!"

"Hmpf!" Mouri gave him an unimpressed glare, "Thank Ran's generosity. Had it been up to me, you'd be camping on the streets, boy!"

Heiji laughed at that, knowing that while the man might not have invited him home, he still wouldn't have left him on the streets. _'Well, he might not be a first class detective, but he's not a bad man.'_

As they settled comfortably in the taxi, Hattori turned to face Ran, who had carefully positioned Conan-kun on her lap,

"So, this Conan-kun? Is he your cousin?"

"Oh no!" Ran looked surprised,

"He's just a free-loader," Mouri Kogoro called out from his seat next to the drivers'.

"Ignore Otou-san," Ran told him fiercely, "we are taking care of him while his parents are away. He's a relative of a family friend, Agasa Hakase!"

"Oh! I see," Heiji's smirk turned mischievous then, "So…Suzuki was right after all. You _are_ Kudo's girlfriend!"

"Hattori-kun!"

* * *

Dinner was a quiet affair, with every one tired from the day's events, Heiji more so from his train journey. Conan-kun slept through the night peacefully, his cold now mostly subsided.

The next morning, when woke up, Heiji was surprised to see it was past nine o'clock.

"Man, I've overslept!" he groaned before getting off the makeshift bed on the living room sofa.

"Mornin' Ran-san," Heiji greeted her as he entered the kitchen after freshening up. "Where's Mouri-han?"

"Asleep," Ran answered from near the stove, carefully flipping a fish on the pan, "Conan-kun got up early to have some soup before going back to sleep. Breakfast, Hattori-kun?"

Ran cooked very well, that Heiji had to admit. And after breakfast, he bid the Mouri's – the old man had woken up halfway through his meal – goodbye and left for the station.

His visit to Tokyo had not gone how he'd planned it. Sure, he knew it would be difficult to find the suddenly elusive Kudo but he'd had confidence that he would. The whole search though, had left him feeling uneasy and Mouri Ran's confirmation that Kudo was alive had been a huge relief.

Then Kudo had suddenly appeared, shocking everyone with his arrival and gone on to prove how Heiji's theory was wrong and brought the real culprit to light. As much as it stung losing to him, he'd have felt worse if he'd had sent an innocent man to prison. And then, as Kudo had said, deductions weren't about winning or losing, because in the end, there was only one conclusion – only one truth!

Heiji's earlier assumptions about Kudo being undeserving of the title 'Heisei Holmes' would have to be revised; because whether or not Kudo was as good as the legendary fictional detective, he certainly was the greatest detective Heiji had ever encountered.

* * *

"I'm back, Okan!" Heiji slid the shoji doors open only to come face to face with a cross Kazuha. "Kazuha! What are ya doin' here?"

"Nice ta see ya too, Heiji!" She huffed, "I'm here to enjoy Obaa-han's special weekend dinner. Why didn't ya tell me you were going to Tokyo?"

"Aa, well, it was a sudden decision," Heiji told her sheepishly as they moved into the house, "But I'll tell you all about it over dinner! Sounds fair?"

"You better!" she threatened jokingly, "Here I come to your place thinking we'll spend the long weekend together by going with my uncle to his favourite fishing spot and Obaa-han tells me you've gone off to Tokyo!"

"Ha ha!" Heiji sat down at the low table in a seiza position, "Well, you probably wouldn't have enjoyed it either way! I got caught up in a case there –"

"Another case Hei-chan?" Hattori Shizuka asked her son in an amused tone as she brought in the rice cooker.

"I'd heard about it from Superintendent Matsumoto of Tokyo Police," Hattori Heizo said as he walked in, still clad in work clothes, "though only the bare details. What happened?"

"Oyaji!" Heiji grinned at his father, "Looks like Kudo's been an influence on the police there; they hardly blinked an eye at me being a high school detective!"

"Kudo?" Kazuha asked, "You mean that detective from Tokyo you keep reading about in the paper?"

"Reading about in the paper?" Heizo looked at his son, amused, "I'd not heard of this Kazuha-chan. Do tell me more about it,"

"SO!" Heiji began loudly, before his Kazuha could tell his father how obsessive he'd been about following Kudo's cases, "I was invited to this old lady's house along with the Mouri's –"

"Mouri?" Shizuka said in surprise, "As in the detective? Weren't you looking for Kudo-san?"

"Aa," he accepted the bowl of rice from his mother, "One thing led to another and I was with the Mouri's while looking for Kudo when the old man got a client. I went in as part of the troupe. And for keeping up the disguise."

"Disguise?" Kazuha asked sceptically, "What for?"

"Husband was a diplomat, she wanted to conduct a behaviour investigation on her son's girlfriend," Heiji began animatedly, getting into the mood of telling a story, "so she introduced us as family friends –"

His mother chuckled, "So you helped conduct a behaviour investigation? That's tame compared to what you usually do. Though did you meet Kudo-san? That was what you went to Tokyo for, right?"

"Aa, I did," then his face turned solemn, startling Kazuha and his parents, "and no, not a behaviour investigation. It turned out to be a murder. The diplomat, her husband, was killed."

"Oh, poor lady," Shizuka murmured sympathetically,

"Poor nothing, Okan," Heiji growled before sighing, "She was the murderer."

Heizo jerked slightly in surprise, "And she called in a detective?"

"Yup," Heiji nodded, "In fact, she killed him right in front of us, Mouri-han and I."

"But you solved the case, right?" Kazuha said, "You caught her!"

Heiji rubbed his head sheepishly, "Aa, about that…I got into a slight deduction completion with Kudo regarding that case,"

"With Kudo?" Heizo questioned, "I was unaware he was there with you."

"Nah, he wasn't," Heiji wondered how to explain his hypothesis that Kudo was solving Mouri's cases, even though that wasn't true as far as he'd seen and decided to just skip that part, "but I was pretty sure he'd come. He was in contact with the Mouri's and I'd kind of challenged him to show up when I was at their place…"

"Heiji!" Shizuka reprimanded her son, but the amusement at his oh so predictable actions was clearly audible in her tone.

"So?" Kazuha leaned forward eagerly, "What happened with the competition?"

Heiji looked at her simply, "I lost, completely."

The whole table had frozen. Then shaking himself, Heizo hummed, "Oh? That's unusual? He wasn't even present at the scene and yet he reached to the conclusion before you?"

Heiji scowled at his father's subtle-not-so-subtle goading, as if telling him he was aware that Heiji was omitting something from the story.

"I was wrong," Heiji answered his father's unasked question, "Pointed out the wrong person as the culprit. He admitted to committing the crime too! Then Kudo suddenly appears and says _I'm_ wrong and we were all fooled by the killer's trick!"

"Had she really created such an elaborate trick?" Kazuha inquired.

"Yeah," Heiji nodded around his chopsticks, "Had everything prepared to pin the blame on the old man, her father-in-law, before Kudo came and tore her plan to shreds!"

"Well," Heizo said after a minute of awkward silence, "you can learn from this, Heiji, and not be so hot-blooded next time."

Heiji groaned at his father's usual piece of advice, "Yeah, yeah!"

They continued on with their meal comfortably when Heiji suddenly placed his chin on his palm, elbow supported on the table, "Ya know, Kudo said something to me in the end that really struck a chord in me."

The Hattori couple exchanged glances and watched as Heiji's eyes focused on something that none in the room could see,

 _'Deduction isn't about winning or losing. There is no superior or inferior…that's because…'_

"What?"

"Huh?" Heiji looked up at Kazuha's question.

"What did he say that struck a chord in you?"

Even his parents looked curious.

Heiji chuckled and completed the sentence his mind had been repeating, "There is…only one truth!"

* * *

 **AN: How was it? Please let me know through your reviews!**

 **Rockster: Yes, actually. There are a few alcohols that are used to treat colds. Most are hot alcoholic beverages taken with lemon or a dash of honey. 'Toddy' is more commonly used for cold treatments though, not Paikaru. So yes, while Heiji knew that alcohol helps, he was not sure if _Paikaru_ might. I'm glad you like Heiji's point of view :) Thanks for reviewing!**

 **emmahoshi: Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you're liking it! And no, no updating schedule or anything, I'll just be posting chapters as soon as they are fininshed. Sometimes the chapters may be long so they'd take more time and sometimes it's lack of inspiration or time that may cause a delay... But I'll never abandon my stories, so you can count on that!**

 **REVIEW PLEASE!**


	4. Sherlock and Mycroft

**AN: Hello! The Holmes Freak case is here! I think I'll mostly be splitting this case into three chapters, so do I hope it will keep your interest intact!**

 **Oh and about the quiz sheet - yes those are questions that I have made up and they are authentic. I'm actually quite a Sherlock Holmes fan myself, so I had quite a bit of fun writing this chapter.**

 **Those who do not get the answers to the questions and would like to know, it is written at the end of the chapter.**

"Dialogues"

' _Thoughts'_

* * *

Chapter 4: Sherlock and Mycroft

* * *

The next weekend, the newspaper included a contest form with it. A form that, if filled correctly, would offer the participant a chance to go on a three day trip with other Sherlock Holmes fans, to private weekend retreat. Heiji had been about to dismiss it, as he'd always been more of an Ellery Queen fan, before remembering that Kudo was one – a huge fan of Sherlock Holmes.

"Hmm…there might be a possibility of his presence at this Sherlock Holmes Package Tour," Heiji muttered to himself, "He'd win a spot at it for sure. But, the questions here seem quite easy. Even I could answer them, and I've barely read his books once…"

"Heiji! Has the morning paper come?" Shizuka called out, "Your father's almost ready to leave for work!"

"Aa, I'm coming! It's here!"

Heiji handed the paper to his father as he settled down for breakfast, filling out the contest form with a pen he'd picked up on the way.

"What's that, Heiji?"

"A contest form, Okan," he replied absently, "for a package tour next weekend."

"Can you afford to go?" she asked as she served her husband, "Don't you have to study for school? If I recall, you missed two days this week because of that robbery and murder case that landed you stranded in that mansion across the city without any return routes!"

Heiji finally looked up from his writing, "Okan! I'm at the top of my class! And I already know what they're teaching in class, the only marks that the teacher can cut are due to lack of attendance. You know that!"

Heizo snorted softly at his son's arrogance, "Leave him be, Shizu. My son's a genius. What trip is this, anyway?"

Heiji, who'd raised his chin in pride at his father's compliment, suddenly scratched his head in slight embarrassment, "Ah, it's a Sherlock Holmes Package Tour."

"Sherlock Holmes?" His mother sounded surprised, "I thought you liked Ellery Queen's works."

His father gave a booming laugh and stood up, mussing his son's hair lightly as he made to leave, "I'm sure Heiji's tastes in detective fiction haven't changed. This has more to do with a certain 'Detective of the East' that he's been talking about the past week, I'm sure."

Heiji batted his father's hands away from his hair as his mother giggled, "Don't tease him, Heizo! My baby's just making new friends!"

His mother's words brought Heiji's actions to a halt. Friends? Was that what he thought of Kudo? They were rivals for sure, but friends? No…not yet. He'd barely known the guy, seeing him all for an hour at max. Then he'd disappeared and Heiji had no idea how to get in touch with him again.

But, wasn't he trying to do so now? Win a spot at a Sherlock Holmes Tour because he thought Kudo might be there?

His only true friend had been Kazuha – the sweet, strong girl he'd played with as kids and grown up with. Kazuha had seen him at his best and worst, shared his joys and sorrows in a very literal way.

He was a genius in the true meaning of the word and thus found it very difficult at times to connect with others. He got along well with his classmates and kendo club mates, but that had been it. He was popular in school and well loved by his teachers and the students, but it was impersonal.

No one was as close to him as Kazuha was and he doubted there'd ever be someone like that. Kazuha understood him even if she couldn't keep up with him. She accepted him and didn't think of him as weird for actually wanting to look at dead bodies or crime scenes.

Kudo…there was no doubt that Kudo was a genius too. He might have had to face the same problems as him in the social department. Mouri Ran may have been his Kazuha, but their similarities did not automatically make them friends.

He respected Kudo as a detective, but who knew how he was as a person? Heiji might not get along with him at all – though the short conversation he'd managed to have with him that day made him feel otherwise.

Gah! No use thinking about things like that now. He'd see to that later. Now, he had to finish that contest form and go post it as soon as possible!

* * *

When the congratulatory letter came to him four days later, he remembered to tell Kazuha about it before leaving. True, a phone call before he boarded the train to Tokyo wasn't much of a warning, but she couldn't complain that he hadn't told her at all, now, could she?

"Ahou!" Kazuha yelled over the phone, "Now you tell me? That's _so_ early Heiji!"

"Gomen, gomen," Heiji chuckled, "I just got the confirmation yesterday, you know? Besides, I've gotta go. The train's here!"

"What I want to know is why you're going on a Sherlock Holmes tour! You are not a fan of his, are you?"

"Later, Kazuha! The train! Bye!"

"Wait! Ahou! Don't hang up on me –!"

Heiji did hang up on her, but he knew she'd get over it and cheerfully demand all the details of the trip once he got back. He closed his eyes and tried to get some shut eye before he reached Tokyo. It would be another long trip by car according to the letter he'd received and he wanted to be awake for it.

It was early evening when he reached Tokyo and the other winners had already arrived at the designated meeting place.

"Ah, finally," Kanaya Hiroyuki, the organiser, welcomed him cheerfully, "this is our last guest! Let me make the introductions now. There will be a few more of us travelling by another car; we shall meet them at our destination."

Heiji was glad to hear that, because if those three people in front of him were the only winners of the contest, then meeting Kudo would have been impossible.

"Toda Maria-san here," began the host, "is a rather well reputed Medium. Togano Kento-san and Oki Ayako-san go to Touto University and are members of the 'Analysis and Mysteries' Club there. Togano-san is the president, in fact!"

The university students gave a small bow while the Medium smiled at him.

"And this is Hattori Heiji, from Kansai," said Kanaya-san, "a high school student and an amateur detective!"

That got a few raised eye-brows. High school student and a detective? The couple from the university leaned forward curiously,

"Detective?" asked Togano-san with a bit of doubt, "Are you any good?"

Well used to such scepticism, Heiji grinned at him, "Am pretty famous in Kansai," and did not offer any more information.

It was clear that the two members of the Analysis and Mysteries Club thought that he was not quite good, or else not as good as them, but Heiji had no interest in dealing with the inexperienced couple who believed deductions to be as easy as it was portrayed in books.

"Well," said Kanaya-san as he sat behind the wheel, "It's going to be a long drive. It'll take us three hours at least and we'll have to stop by for a break on the way. All of you can continue your conversation in the van, though – get acquainted with each other! You'll be spending three days together, after all!"

Heiji had taken the seat next to the driver, letting the couple take the seat behind him while the Medium had the last row of seats all to herself. What followed was the most tedious conversation of all time. Or that's how it seemed to Heiji, at first.

The other Holmes fans had gotten along quite well, chattering all the way about their favourite stories and characters they liked best or how the relationship of Holmes and Watson came to be. It was like they were preparing to write a thesis on the topic! In fact, Heiji was sure he'd be able to write one now without even looking at the books again! Even the host would join in at times, throwing in a few comments before focusing back on the road.

"What about you, Hattori-san?" Toda-san asked after a while, trying to draw him into the conversation, "Which is your favourite story?"

Ah, there was the problem. While Heiji had definitely read the books – who interested in the mystery genre hadn't? – he had not been quite as fanatic about it. Not all the stories he'd read were quite fresh in his mind, though there was one particular one he'd enjoyed a lot.

"I guess that'd be 'The Dancing Men'," Heiji told her, "I remember trying to decode the messages by myself when I was a kid. Tried quite hard, but it didn't really make much sense ta me then,"

The others laughed. Oki-san chortled, "Haven't we all tried that at some point? I remember being fascinated enough with it that I memorised the whole set of figures and their alphabetical representation!"

See? Fanatics. Heiji had never really bothered with memorising them, though his eidetic memory still remembered most of the letters.

One good thing about all the chatter was that the long journey did not seem quite as long – or boring. Once drawn into their conversation, he'd found himself enjoying it quite a bit, even though Doyle's works weren't his usual preferred reading material.

* * *

After stopping by at a gas station and eating dinner at a nearby restaurant, they reached Mycroft. It was located next to a cliff and was two storeys high with a garage beside it. They were the first to arrive so they moved in and claimed their rooms.

Heiji picked one on the second floor near the stair case and had just put his bag down when he noticed something – a camera. It was quite visible and large, held up in a corner of the room by the ceiling.

 _'_ _Guess, they're pretty serious about this Tour, huh? The host might have planned a competition of sorts if they've installed cameras in every room.'_

Heiji decided to lie down on the bed and relax instead of joining the others downstairs when he heard another car engine. He got out of his room and leaned against the railing to peer down at the living room. It seemed that the other winners had arrived.

Toda-san had gone out to meet them while Togano-san and Oki-san stood a bit further inside the room and they watched the others come in. The first to enter was a middle aged woman and a slightly athletic looking man. Then was Mouri Ran.

Heiji was just a tiny bit surprised. What were the Mouri's doing here? Was Kudo with them? But no, after Ran-san came the little kid. What was his name again? Conan or something…

Finally, Mouri Kogoro and a man in a suit entered with Toda-san right behind them. No Kudo, yet. Was he coming later? Was he coming on his own? Heiji didn't know. One thing he'd learnt over the years was that humans were creatures of habit. Participating in this contest for Holmes fans was something Kudo would have been sure to do; then, why wasn't he here? Did he not win a place? Impossible!

The host began speaking then, "Ladies and gentlemen! First, I'd like to welcome all of you to my vacation home, 'Mycroft'. I am Kanaya Hiroyuki, the organizer of this trip! Everybody here is a Sherlock Holmes fan chosen scrupulously by me. Please make yourselves at home –"

"Are you _sure_ that you chose carefully?" The man in the suit interrupted with irritation colouring his tone, "There's a person here who hardly knows how to spell 'Holmes'…"

"Ah, really?" Toda-san asked in surprise.

"It's that man with the moustache," replied the athletic man,

Heiji stifled a snort; the 'man with the moustache' was none other than 'Mouri Kogoro'.

"I think I'll go home," Mouri grumbled rather childishly.

"Ah…wait!" Kanaya-san stopped him, "If I chose this person, it's simply because this man is a detective, a modern day Sherlock Holmes!"

Heiji shook his head in disbelief, what was the guy saying? The only Heisei Holmes was Kudo Shinichi; just because Mouri solved a few cases (okay, a lot of cases) and appeared in the paper frequently due to his sudden prowess in deduction ability, it did not make him a detective on par with Holmes. Heiji had seen first-hand how slow the other man was, during his last visit to Tokyo.

"Ah," began Togano-san, "you're Mouri Kogoro, aren't you?"

"EH!" the owner and Mouri, both were surprised.

Heiji wondered why, the two university students were from Tokyo – naturally they'd have heard of him. For all Kanaya-san claimed to be a great Holmes fan, he certainly wasn't the sharpest tool in the box.

"I recognise you," Togano-san continued, "I've seen you on television and in the newspapers many times! I'm sure you're very smart but I believe that we're as intelligent and capable as you are, to solve those cases."

 _'_ _That would be, not at all, then,'_ thought Heiji, ' _coz as far as I have seen, he's yet to demonstrate any genius deducing abilities,'_

"Besides," said Oki-san, "he'd be no match for Holmes!"

Deciding that the drama going on downstairs was more interesting than simply standing up here, Heiji walked down the stairs in time to hear Mouri grumble,

"They just had to say that –"

"Maa, maa," Conan tried to diffuse his anger, "That's only natural with Holmes as an adversary!"

Heiji came to stand a little behind them, watching with amused eyes,

"Shut up! As if I'd lose to some fictional character!" Mouri shouted at his young charge.

At that, the people levelled near murderous glares at him and Heiji gave a small chortle, _'Actually, you totally would!_ '

Their glares, however, only seemed to irritate the detective further and he bonked Conan over the head, "This is all _your_ fault! _You_ applied for this tour!"

 _'_ _Oh?'_ Heiji was surprised, _'The kid was the one who applied for it? And he won a spot too?!'_

"Conan-kun!" Ran-san gave a small worried cry.

"Conan!"

She was quickly pushed away by the swarm of people though, who crowded around the little boy in obvious fascination.

"Ah! Your name is Conan!" the athletic man exclaimed,

"Really?" the man in the suit asked,

"What a lovely name!" Toda-san smiled at the boy,

"Aa, my father was a fan of Conan Doyle's works. I love my name too! It's a nice name, isn't it?" Conan replied happily,

"It's splendid!" The other's chorused.

Heiji was rather amused at that; the kid sure was loving it, though.

"Ah, I guess I was worried for nothing then," Ran-san suddenly said.

"Eh?" Mouri said inelegantly.

Even Heiji was confused.

"Well," Ran turned to her father, "Conan is usually very mature and not very child-like. I feel relieved to see him smiling so innocently,"

 _'_ _Huh,'_ Heiji looked back at the kid, _'guess I don't know much about that. I hardly saw much of him last time I was here. He was mostly out sick…'_

"But to say he likes Holmes," continued Ran in a fond tone, "it's just like him,"

Heiji perked up at that, _'Is she talking about…?'_

"Him?" questioned Mouri in a rather disinterested tone.

"Yeah, him – the sly, show-off, deductive maniac, Holmes freak who sings off key –"

Heiji cut her off, inserting himself into the conversation, "Although he sings off-key, he's a great soccer player and he beat me in the last case and ran off. You're talking about Kudo Shinichi, aren't you?"

 _'_ _I didn't know Kudo sang off-key,_ ' was an errant thought that passed through Heiji's mind.

"Hattori-kun!"

Heiji smiled at Ran in greeting.

"Are you a Holmes fan, too?" she asked, surprised at seeing him here.

"No, no," Heiji made a dismissive gesture, "I came to this tour because I felt that I might run into Kudo here. Besides, I prefer Ellery Queen to Conan Doyle –"

Heiji was immediately the recipient of the same burning glares that had previously been trained on Mouri,

"– though I admit that Conan Doyle is the best of the genre…"

And the glares suddenly transformed into smiles.

' _Fanatics,_ ' Heiji muttered in the privacy of his mind.

The owner quickly clapped his hands to draw attention, "Since it's quite late, I'm sure we'd all like to turn in. so I'll quickly go through the details…"

After explaining the meal times, the owner informed them about a mystery solving competition the next day, after dinner. However only those who would get 990/1000 on the Holmes Quiz sheet passed out would be allowed to take part in the next day's competition. The winner for that competition would receive the first edition (hard-bound copy) of 'A Study in Scarlet'.

That quickly put all the fans into a competitive mood. The only thing that irked Heiji was that he had to give up his mobile along with the others in order to prevent any cheating.

Heiji spent most of the night reading an Ellery Queen book – The Greek Coffin Mystery – and reluctantly filling out the quiz sheet, though he was pretty sure he'd gotten more than ten questions incorrect. Some of the questions were so obscure, he wondered if anyone of them would be able to get 990 out of 1000 correct.

Who was he kidding? All of them were fanatics – Holmes' freaks, as Ran-san had described Kudo – _of course_ they'd be able to get it right!

But seriously,

Q 142) How many people fell victim to the 'speckled band'?

What the hell was a speckled band? He recalled something vaguely about a story titled 'The Mystery of the Speckled Band', but he'd no clue as to what the band was.

Q 208) Who is 'The Woman'?

Ah! That was something Heiji knew. Irene Adler was practically as famous as Holmes.

Q 397) What is Miss Mary Southerland by profession? (From 'A Case of Identity')

And Heiji had had enough. He didn't know half of what most questions were asking about and it would just be better to go to sleep.

* * *

Morning.

...

...

...

* * *

Mid-day.

...

...

...

* * *

Evening.

...

...

...

* * *

Night.

...

...

...

And still no Kudo.

Dinner done with, most of the others had a different reason to be ticked off. The host was nowhere to be seen.

"Hurry up and call the host," Oki-san told the maid, Iwai Hitomi-san, "I want him to start grading the quiz sheets!"

"But," Iwai-san said, "he told me to entertain all of you till he comes. And he'd be here after dinner, for sure."

"I think he's planning a surprise," the athletic gym teacher, Kawatsu Ikuo-san said excitedly.

The middle-aged woman, Shimizu Nanako-san, the librarian, simply hummed non-committedly.

' _And Kudo's not here either,'_ Heiji sighed in disappointment, ' _I shouldn't have come on this tour… A gathering full of Holmes freaks, really, what_ _ **am**_ _I doing here?_ '

At past midnight, the man in the suit, Fujisawa Toshiaki-san, had finally had enough of waiting for the suddenly elusive host.

"I'm going to my room," saying so, he stomped off.

Toda-san sighed, "I guess it was all a hoax, huh? The host doesn't grade the papers, no one wins and he keeps that prize book to himself. I'm going to bed too."

Kawatsu-san and Shimizu-san followed her upstairs.

"This is ridiculous," Mouri said with droopy eyes, and went off too.

"What are you going to do, Conan-kun?" Ran asked her surrogate brother.

"Guess I'll wait a little longer," he said looking up at the wall clock.

And that fixed Ran's decision to stay too; she couldn't leave her little brother alone downstairs with strangers after all.

Heiji, out of that same sense of duty, sat down beside them at the table, waiting a pointless wait. Togano-san and Oki-san were the only ones seated, besides them. The maid, of course, faithfully stayed in hearing distance.

Three hours later, even Oki-san was tired. She nudged her boyfriend,

"Hey, Kento, let's go back to our rooms too!"

 _'_ _Good idea,'_ thought Heiji sleepily, _'I think I've reached my limit too. How long is that kid planning to stay up? How long_ _ **can**_ _he stay up? Making Ran-san and me stay up too… I've got a good mind to just leave and go to bed now…'_ He let out a huge yawn.

"Hang in there, Ayako," Togano-san gave her a tired smile, "in these situations, the first person to flinch, loses."

 _'_ _Seriously, man?!_ ' Heiji thought incredulously, _'How much longer are you going to wait?'_

Togano-san suddenly stilled, looking out of the window, "What's that?"

They all turned to see what he was looking at, getting up to stand by the window,

"Isn't that the car we came in?"

"It's the host!" said Oki-san, "He's driving the car,"

And sure enough, it was Kanaya-san. Dressed up in the same garb (A deerstalker and inverness cape) as he'd worn yesterday, the host was sitting behind the wheel and driving the car.

"See?" Togano-san said smugly, "Now he's going to start that deduction quiz."

"Yes, you were right, Kento," Oki-san smiled at him.

But then,

"H-hey, wait a minute," Oki-san started in an anxious tone,

"He's heading towards the cliff!" Togano-san exclaimed.

The sleepy haze vanished, alertness taking its place and Heiji had just barely opened the window and they – the kid, Conan and he – jumped out, running towards the car.

The car rolled down a slight step of concrete and onto the muddy terrain and suddenly accelerated a slight bit,

"Oh no! He sped up!" Heiji didn't like where this was going.

"Sir! Kanaya-san!" Conan called out to the man desperately,

"Hey, old man, stop the car!" Heiji banged at the windows.

Then, all of a sudden, Conan jumped up, grabbing onto the rear-view mirror. They both called out to the man but they were ignored,

 _'_ _That noise…what is it that I am hearing? It's not the engine, for sure. And why is the dashboard covered with a cloth?'_ Both Heiji and Conan thought in tandem.

Just before the car went over the edge, Conan jumped down on to the ground and Heiji breathed a silent sigh of relief. It was short lived though, when he saw the car crashing onto the rocks and waves below and going up in a flame.

* * *

 **xxx**

Sherlock Holmes Quiz Sheet Answers:

 _Q142) Only one victim. The next one was saved by Holmes._

 _Q 397) A typist. That was actually a pretty beautiful deduction made by Holmes!_

* * *

 **AN: As usual, please let me know how you liked it by writing a review! It takes hardly a minute and greatly encourages me!**

 **Reviewers : For some reason, reviews of those who have an account, or even those who do not, are not being shown on the list apart frm an alert that i get about your review. So, since I can't PM you based on your reviews, I'll be thanking you here -**

 **The Cailleach - Thanks for reviewing! Glad to know you liked my story! Yes, Heiji's point of view is quite interesting to write, and I'm having quite a bit of fun doing so :) Hope you enjoyed this chapter as well!  
**

 **mmamaluel - Thanks for reviewing! It feels nice to know that you're enjoying the plot of the story; I hope I've done justice in writing the missing scenes from the manga and anime, they never really showed all the details from Heiji's perspective, you know? And of course I'll keep writing it! I never abandon my stories!  
**


	5. The Mystery of Edogawa Conan

**AN: Hello! Sorry for the delay! But here is the next part! Part 3 will be out soon, it is still a work in progress at the moment - life interferes.**

 **But for now, onwards with the story! Let me know how you liked it!**

 **Enjoy~**

 **.**

"Dialogues"

' _Thoughts'_

* * *

Chapter 5: The Mystery of Edogawa Conan

* * *

"What? Kanaya-san is dead?"

The others had been roused from their sleep and were now all standing out in the yard.

"Yes," Heiji replied, "he drove off the cliff right in front of us,"

The maid was in tears, "B-but, why did he –?"

"It was a suicide, I tell you," Mouri yawned, "He couldn't give up that precious book of his, so he took it with him and killed himself."

"I'd rather support a criminal hypothesis," Togano-san surprised everyone with his words.

"What?"

"The car went very slowly," Togano-san shrugged uncomfortably under everyone's stare, "someone could have killed him before placing him in the car and then starting it. The murderer could have prepared everything beforehand in the garage…"

"Of course!" Fujisawa-san agreed, "The murderer could have acted surprised and joined the group after the explosion!"

"But the car suddenly accelerated…" Heiji interjected,

"Eh?" Togano-san was now confused.

"Oh come on!" Mouri said, "It's a suicide! A suicide! You've been reading too many detective novels!"

' _And you've read too little,'_ thought Heiji irritably before saying, "Besides, there is one thing that's been bugging me – there was a strange sound coming from the car, as if there was wind in it. But, it wasn't the sound of the engine."

"Could it be the air conditioner?" pondered Kawatsu-san, "It is rather hot today,"

 _'Of course!'_ thought Conan, immediately getting on his hands and knees to look at the tire tracks.

"Anyway," Mouri said, "it's useless to fish the body out. Best to call the police and wait."

Heiji, too busy looking at the tire marks, missed Ran's confused question, "What are you doing, Conan-kun?"

And the kid's response, "Nothing, just looking for –"

Bam!

"Ow!"

"It hurts!"

Heiji and Conan sat back on their heels and rubbed their foreheads where they bumped into each other.

"Hattori-kun," Ran asked him, "are you looking for something, too?"

"Yes and no!" Heiji told her angrily, "I was just trying to see if that old man had really put the air conditioning on! But this brat was in my way, again…"

 _'Again?!_ ' Heiji stopped in surprise at his own words and looked back at the kid, who was gingerly rubbing his forehead, _'Now that I think about it…during the previous case, we hit our heads in the same fashion when I was investigating the murder.'_

"Damn, I can't see anything!" muttered Conan, "It's so dark!"

"Yeah, you're right," Heiji replied, his eyes still trained on the child, _'I knew he was smart…but was that just a fluke or…something more? Usually, I'd say he picked up some stuff living with a detective, but with the detective in question being Mouri Kogoro…'_

"Here," Oki-san offered her lighter to them suddenly, "Is it better lit now, young detectives?"

"Ah, thank you," Conan chirped at her,

"That's very kind of you," Heiji told her, thinking, _'Geez, what's with this kid now? He's suddenly oozing an overdose of sweetness.'_

With the lighter, it was easy for both – yes, _both_ – of them to see the lack of water droplets that were characteristic of an air conditioner in use.

' _I have to think about this kid later,_ ' Heiji thought as they joined the others.

"The host took our phones away! How do we call the police?" Kawatsu-san asked, distressed.

"They must still be in his room, though," the maid assured him.

* * *

They were not. Well, technically they were, but all the phones were broken. Destroyed.

Also, the book – the first edition copy of 'A Study in Scarlet' – was also missing from the host's safe.

"Argh! We better take the other vehicle and leave this place," Fujisawa-san suggested.

"No use," Heiji told them as he entered the room. His eyes narrowed in displeasure when he saw his mobile dismantled and smashed, "I just checked the other car. Someone pierced the tank; there's no fuel left. Also, the battery is dead. That car is unusable."

"Oh no…" Ran said worriedly.

"Still think my hypothesis is wrong?" Togano-san asked Mouri, "This clearly seems to be a murder, now,"

Mouri huffed and turned away,

"Anyway," began Heiji, "I still can't understand how the killer made the car accelerate. However, he destroyed our phones and made the car unusable. He's cut off all means of communication, so…he doesn't intend to stop here!"

"W-what? Who could have done this?" Kawatsu-san said nervously, "One of us?"

That soon sparked an argument, with accusations flying all over the place, pointing fingers at each other about how they had argued with the victim and had a disagreement with him.

"ENOUGH!" Mouri finally shouted over the din.

They fell quiet at that. Mouri took a deep breath to calm down before continuing,

"The culprit is among us and he's isolated himself, we'll find him if we keep searching. Now, you're going to tell me, who spoke to Kanaya-san yesterday after he gave his speech?"

No one had in the end, for Kanaya-san had gone to his room immediately and then the next thing they knew, he had driven off the cliff!

"Damn," Mouri sighed, "We don't know what he did during the day, and it is not possible to get hold of the body. It will be difficult find out when he died."

"The surveillance cameras!" exclaimed Kawatsu-san, "We could see everything there!"

That turned out to be a false hope though, when the maid informed them that the cameras were fake. It was only there so that none would attempt to cheat.

"We do know some things, though," Heiji said, "it was at about 3:30 in the morning when the car began to move. That takes six people off the suspects list, doesn't it?"

That was true; Oki-san, Togano-san, Ran-san, Conan-kun, the maid – Iwai-san – and Heiji, himself, were in the clear. It seemed foolish to Heiji to even consider the boy, Conan-kun, as a suspect. His seemingly hidden intelligence notwithstanding, the kid was physically incapable of killing someone.

"So," began Fujisawa-san, "you're trying to say that those of us who were not in the living room at that time may be the culprit?"

"Please don't include me in the suspects, thank you," Mouri-tantei muttered crossly,

Heiji had to agree on that, Mouri had not even been meant to come on this tour and was personally invited by the host – he had no motive to kill. Suddenly, Oki-san leaned close to him and whispered into his ear, trying not to attract attention,

"Say, did you find what you were looking for, a while ago?"

Ah! The water droplets in the tire marks; he had returned her lighter back but had not mentioned about his findings, or lack thereof.

"No," Heiji told her,

"All right," she then gave a huge smirk and began laughing loudly.

HA…HA…HA! HA…HA!

Heiji was surprised, why was she laughing? He was not alone in his confusion though and after a while her boyfriend questioned her,

"Ayako?"

"I know," she said a little breathless, taking out a cigarette and lighting it with her lighter, "I know who the murderer is, how he did it and I also have the evidence!"

"Eh!" Conan-kun exclaimed at Oki-san's proclamation.

"Really?" Toda-san asked,

 _'What?! She knows?'_ Heiji was surprised, _'Does she know something we don't? A clue that led her to the identity of the killer?'_

"I'll give you guys ten minutes to figure it out; if the culprit doesn't want me to reveal who it is," she let out a puff of smoke, "they shall do so themselves,"

Saying that, she walked out of the room.

"Ayako! Where are you going?" Togano-san called after her,

"To the toilet," she replied drily,

"You shouldn't go by yourself," her boyfriend protested, following after her, "the murderer could –"

The others heard her voice from the hallway as the two disappeared from sight, "You'll protect me though, won't you?"

"And even the great detective loses face…" Fujisawa-san mocked Mouri lightly,

 _'That does sting me a bit,_ ' Heiji thought,

"She's bluffing," Mouri scoffed, unable to believe that the woman had actually figured it out.

 _'That could have been,_ ' Heiji privately agreed, _'if the circumstances were different. That lady has no reason to bluff. Most likely –'_

His thoughts were cut off by Conan's words, "No, she must have a clue that we don't."

"Yes, you're right," Heiji found himself agreeing, before realising just _who_ had spoken.

Heiji and Conan looked at each other in surprise, a bit stunned when they realised that their thoughts were on the same wavelength.

"Now that I think about it," Ran spoke suddenly, causing everyone to shift their attention to her, "she was acting rather strangely today,"

"What do you mean?" Heiji said,

"When I was on my way back to my room after lunch," Ran explained, "I met her in the hallway. When she saw me, she quickly hid something behind her back…I think it was the quiz sheet."

"The quiz sheet!" Heiji and Conan exclaimed in unison,

"B-but, she didn't come to lunch, did she?" Toda-san asked suddenly,

"Maybe she went into our rooms when we were eating!" Fujisawa-san said,

"She dared to cheat!" Kawatsu-san said in disgust,

"What a woman…" Mouri shook his head.

The door opened then and Togano-san came in, sans girlfriend.

"So! Who's the culprit?"

"You asked her, right?"

"We want to know!"

Togano-san stumbled back at their barrage of questions. He shook his head ruefully though,

"I did ask her," he told them, "but she wouldn't even tell me, and then she locked herself in the toilet,"

"Hmph," Fujisawa-san clenched his hands in obvious anger, "she wants to make us wait…"

Heiji sighed and looked at the maid then, "Say, maid-han, there were others apart from tha' lady who didn't eat lunch, weren't there?"

"Yes," she replied, "Togano-san and Shimizu-san didn't come down for lunch either,"

 _'The boyfriend and the quiet librarian,'_ Heiji mused, _'so if they were in their rooms at that time, then that means Oki-han didn't go into their room. Anyway, she must have known from the start that the cameras were only props if she was going to cheat –'_

"Hey, Onii-chan," piped up a curious and innocent voice, "did Ayako-san come to your room during lunch, today?"

 _'Him again!'_ Heiji narrowed his eyes, _'Asking simple, innocent questions that actually have more meaning behind them. I can't seem to figure out that kid at all!_ '

"No," Togano-san smiled down at Conan, "I was in my room, working on the quiz the whole time, but no one came,"

 _'And his answer to the kid's question just gave me a clue,'_ Heiji couldn't figure out if that was the child's actual reason for asking the question, but, _'at least now we know that if it wasn't Togano-han, then she must have seen it in someone else's room – the essential thing that led her to know the murderer. In one of the other person's rooms – the ones that have no alibi!'_

So far, Kawatsu-san, Shimizu-san, Fujisawa-san and Toda-san were without alibis. Mouri-tantei too, but Heiji had crossed him off the suspects list. He definitely wasn't the killer.

"Er…" Ran said then, "Oki-san is taking quite a lot of time…"

Ran was right, Oki Ayako had been in the washroom for the past twenty minutes! They immediately rushed out of the room and towards the toilet. Mouri loudly knocked at the door.

Bang! Bang!

"Oki-san! Oki-san!" Mouri yelled, "Oki-san!"

"What's with this racket?" Oki-san asked, opening the toilet door.

The men immediately backtracked, feeling slightly embarrassed now that they knew she was fine and not captured or killed by the murderer.

"And, excuse me!" she continued, "But, why are all of you gathered around the bathroom?"

"Well," Mouri lifted his hands defensively, "we were just worried…"

"We also wanted to know who the culprit is," Fujisawa-san told her.

"Oh, that?" she began walking away, "I thought about it in the toilet and I think I was wrong."

"Huh?"

"Sorry about that."

"Just as I thought," Mouri grumbled after her retreating back, "she was bluffing,"

Heiji on the other hand, thought differently, ' _Why? Why did she change her mind so suddenly?'_

The others began moving back to the living room, leaving Heiji and Conan standing there, in front of the toilet.

 _'Damn,'_ thought Conan, _'now she changed her statement and we still don't have any leads!_ '

Finding that they had been left behind, the two made their way back to the others. Heiji closed the door behind them and turned around. Quickly making a head count, he realised they were missing one person. Where was –

"Ah?" Conan-kun spoke out, "Where is Ayako-san?"

– Yes, her. Oki Ayako was gone.

"That woman went out to take a walk," Mouri answered,

"We tried to stop her but, she said 'there won't be any more murders' and went out anyway," Ran continued.

"Well," Togano-san shrugged, "with all the suspects in this room…so there's no need to worry…"

"And when morning comes," Kawatsu-san said, "one of us will go to the rail station by foot and call the police."

That reassured everyone for a while. However that momentary peace was soon disrupted by an explosion.

BOOM!

"What the hell was that?" Mouri cried out in shock.

"It came from the garage," Togano-san replied, fear painted over his features.

* * *

The garage was ablaze. Smoke was wafting upwards, clouding the clear night sky in a murky haze. Inside, orange flames continued to lick their way up the garage walls, almost as if determined to char it to ashes.

"Could Ayako-san…" Ran's voice trembled, "could Ayako-san have been in there?"

"N-no," Togano-san's tone was full anguish, "No! Ayako! Ayako!"

He tried to run into the garage in an attempt to save his girlfriend but was quickly held back by Mouri and Fujisawa-san. They kept hold on him despite his struggles as Togano-san desperately tried to free himself, a small litany of his girlfriend's name falling through his lips.

"Don't be foolish!" Mouri told him, "The smoke will suffocate you!" Then he asked the maid, "Are there any fire extinguishers?"

"There are three in the house," came her prompt reply.

Mouri and the maid immediately went to retrieve it, and Togano-san had calmed down enough to think rationally and wait for the fire to be put out. As the two of them started extinguishing the fire, Fujisawa-san's eyes suddenly widened,

"Please, put the fire out soon," he sounded frantic suddenly, "or else…the book will…"

' _The book…?_ ' thought Heiji and Conan curiously, wondering what he meant.

The fire was soon put out and Togano-san entered the burnt garage, calling out his girlfriend's name. Mouri and Fujisawa-san followed him in and after a moment of deliberation, so did Ran.

While the others searched for the missing woman, Fujisawa-san carefully opened the back door of the car using a handkerchief – it too had been burnt, and the metal was still quite hot.

"AH!" Fujisawa-san screamed and scrambled backwards, following down on his rear as he looked into the car fearfully.

"What –" began Togano-san as he came to look and then stopped as he saw it, "AYAKO!"

For there, on the back seat of the car was a scorched body, lying face down. From the tattered and burnt remains of a few pieces of cloth and skin and hair, it was clearly the corpse of the missing Oki Ayako-san.

"Sadly, based on her clothes and her position," began Mouri, "she was clearly alive a few minutes ago and was caught in the explosion which led to her death,"

"Yes…"Toda-san agreed, having arrived at Togano-san's scream, "but she knew about the murderer, right? That's what she told us…"

"So, you mean," the maid reasoned, "the one who killed the master, also killed her to keep her quiet?"

"But," Shimizu-san said softly, "we were all in the living room when the explosion occurred,"

"Someone must have done it," Toda-san said firmly.

"But how did they do it without being here?" asked Kawatsu-san, then answering his own question, "It must have been the host! He pretended to have died and fallen of the cliff!"

"That's true," Toda-san pondered, "There could have been a dummy in the car,"

"There's a novel with a similar plot-line," Shimizu-san muttered quietly.

Heiji, who had been thinking silently, spoke up then; tired of their baseless theories, "No, it's not that! The host was in the car!"

"I saw him as well," affirmed Conan-kun, "There's no mistake!"

"But then, who's the murderer?" demanded Togano-san harshly, his grief palpable, "WHO KILLED AYAKO?"

He looked at the two youngsters, who stared back at him, their faces politely stoic as he mourned his girlfriend's death.

"You two," he continued, "why are you so sure the host was in the car?"

"Calm down," Kawatsu-san placated him, "they're young. Also, it was dark outside, they could be wrong."

The 'young' comment immediately vexed the two of them.

 _'I'm a very skilled detective,_ ' thought Heiji with irritation, _'making mistakes of such a nature is something only an idiot would do! Dark or not, I can recognise human from dummies; it was the host in the car without a doubt!'_

"Well, now that we know the murderer is not one of us," declared Mouri, "we should go in and wait for day-break,"

His words were met with agreement and everyone traipsed in, feeling decidedly safer when they were together in the living-cum-dining room. Both Heiji and Conan, though, lingered at the crime scene for a few more moments.

"As if it's so easy to mistake a person for a dummy…" Heiji scoffed out loud, Kawatsu-san's statement still stung.

"Yes, but all the suspects were together in the room," Conan-kun pointed out, "although, it would be hard to set a timer to light a flare at a certain hour –"

"No, they couldn't," Heiji shook his head at that possibility, "I was the last one in the garage earlier today when I went to check out the car; and I didn't see any device like that. I saw the car with a hole in the fuel tank; all the fuel had spread out on the floor; the dead battery and an extra bottle of fuel in the boot."

"How could the fuel be ignited?" Conan-kun asked then,

"We don't know, we'll have to keep looking –" it was then Heiji realised just who he'd been talking to, _'And did I just say, **we'd** have to keep looking?'_

Conan-kun placed his chin on his palm in deep thought as he began walking back to the house, "And _why_ did Ayako-san go to the garage?"

 _'W-what just happened? I just carried out a conversation with him; discussing a possible hypothesis of the murder method with a kid – a child nearly ten years my junior! And I didn't even realise it – he spoke so confidently, so sure of his words… it wasn't as if he was wrong either; it was a possibility to be considered.'_

Heiji was stupefied; the child had not spoken in a saccharinely sweet voice like he usually did, either. It was normal and thoughtful and curious that Heiji had not even noticed; too busy paying attention to the child's _words_ to notice that it was a _child's_ words.

 _'For those few moments, it was not as if I was talking to a kid but a detective! A highly intelligent, capable detective, who held a well-reasoned argument with me about the case.'_

* * *

"It's raining quite heavily," Ran commented quietly.

And it was. Mere minutes after they'd settled into the living room, the skies had opened. It had begun as a slight drizzle at first, then gradually increased its torrent of water. At least, the charred garage would finally be void of any errant sparks of flame due to this sudden shower.

"Yes," Toda-san agreed, "if it continues till morning, we won't even be able to go the rail station to call for help."

That was true; there were no umbrellas or raincoats in the house.

"Ah…a night without food or sleep," Mouri yawned, "I'm so hungry,"

"Shall I bring out some refreshments, then?" Iwai-san, the maid, asked in general, and received a few nods of agreement.

"I'll help you," Ran offered.

"I'll come along," Kawatsu-san volunteered, "We shouldn't let the women go by themselves; it's not quite safe in this situation."

"Me too, then," Togano-san said.

The four of them went towards the kitchen, leaving Fujisawa-san, Toda-san, Mouri-tantei, Conan-kun and Heiji in the living room.

"It's very strange," Toda-san pondered, "Why would the host pretend to die then kill Oki-san?"

Mouri's subsequent theory that it was part of the contest and that the murder was accidental – the host only ever meant to scare them by lighting the garage on fire, not kill Oki Ayako with it, was met with anger and irritation.

Heiji thought it was utter bull, ' _Mouri-han is just making up things to suit himself. How does that theory even work when the host is – for the last time – DEAD!'_

"Part of the contest?" Fujisawa-san asked angrily, "This is no joke! Look at this card that was left in front of my door – it tells me to go to the garage at 5:00 am, if I want the book! If I had trusted this message, I would be dead!"

 _'Ah, this is new…'_ Heiji peered at the card that was handed over to Mouri, _'So, it was Fujisawa-san who was supposed to die? Then why did Oki-san get killed? I'm missing something…'_

"5:00 am?" Mouri read, "But, the fire started at 4:30 am!"

' _Yes_ ,' Heiji agreed, _'It is rather convenient that Oki-han was there in the garage – inside the car even – and the fire started. Was she meant to die? Or was this arrangement specifically for Fujisawa-san? The problem is the alibis…how did someone kill Oki-han, when all of us were in the living room? How did the fire start by itself?'_

"Ah!" Mouri exclaimed then, "I know! The host left a card in front of everyone's room. So that way, the most ambitious person who would try to take the book early on, would be taken out of the contest!"

"I didn't see a card in front of my room," Toda-san reminded.

"Nor did I," Shimizu-san said.

"I see…"

"Oi! Mouri-han," Heiji said, finally unable to hold it in, "didn't I already tell you? The host is dead! I saw it clearly! If you can't accept that, you will never come to the right conclusion!"

"Bah," Mouri scoffed, "I can't just trust what a kid saw,"

' _Gah_!' Heiji grit his teeth, _'This guy's so irritating! You're a shame to all detectives if you do not acknowledge facts in front of you!_ '

 _'I think,_ ' Conan concentrated, ignoring the drama taking place, _'Ayako-san went to the garage attracted by the prospect of finding the book there. So…for the second murder, the main thing to solve is – how could the murderer set the garage on fire while being among with us…'_

"It's because of detectives like you that cases go unsolved –!"

"How rude!" Ran exclaimed, as she re-entered the room with a tray laden with snacks, "Don't insult him! My father solves all his cases!"

She placed the tray on the table to look at Heiji who was standing there dumb-founded at her sudden scolding.

"Also, every time he solves a case, he goes into a trance like state that make people think he's sleeping. That's why they've also started calling him 'Sleeping Kogoro'! But he also knows everything about the case, he's not really sleeping. Isn't that right, Otou-san?"

"Aa…" Mouri nodded his ahead in accordance.

' _Sleeping?!_ ' Heiji's eyes widened, _'Wait…Sleeping Kogoro…and that kid who always seems to know so much…'_

Heiji grabbed Ran by her arm and pulled her to one corner of the room, "Hey, come with me for a sec,"

"What is it?" Ran asked in surprise.

"When your old man does his reasoning," Heiji asked her, "where is he?"

From the corner of his eyes, Heiji could see Conan inching closer towards them, trying to obviously eavesdrop, but he let it be. This did concern him after all and Heiji wanted to see how the kid would react.

"He?" Ran was confused, "Who's 'he'?"

"You know," Heiji said, "the one who sticks to you like glue – this kid!"

With that Heiji picked up Conan from the ground by his shirt and held him up for Ran to see. Ran looked surprised at the question and thought for a bit.

"Conan-kun? Come to think of it…he's never around," Conan started flailing his arms about, as if to stop her from speaking,

"Really?" Heiji asked eagerly and with a bit of surprise, _'What is going on? I…I don't know what I'm walking into, but this seems important.'_

"Yes," then she smiled at Heiji in remembrance, "but sometimes he appears from behind Otou-san and helps him with his deductions!"

"Ah! Ah!" Conan struggled in Heiji's hold, a brief look of panic settling over him as he was suddenly turned to face Heiji.

"From behind, huh?" Heiji gave the kid a smirk, "Oh…so you help him from behind, do you?"

"Aa…" Conan gave him what Heiji had now realized to be the 'cute kid' look, "I like playing detective!"

Then the room was flooded with darkness.

There was brief moment of panic and quite a few people screamed. Heiji had put Conan down and was about to ask someone to get the light when Fujisawa-san lit his lighter.

"It was the fuse!" the maid told them.

"Then hurry and fix the circuit breaker," Mouri told her.

Fujisawa-san offered the maid his lighter, "Here, use this,"

A glimpse of metal, shining for a sparse second in the flickering light of the lighter's flame.

 _'An ice-pick?'_ Heiji and Conan's eyes honed onto it in the darkness, _'Oh no!'_

In a flurry of motion, both boys flung themselves onto Fujisawa-san and pushed him to the floor, just as he gave a shout. At the same time there was a loud crash and tinkle of breaking glass.

CRASH!

"AHH!"

"What happened?" Mouri asked frantically.

"Hurry, get the lights!"

"Maid-san! Hurry!"

"What is going on?!"

The light came back on and the ice-pick intended for Fujisawa-san had thankfully only pierced his arm, instead of his torso, due to Heiji and Conan's quick actions.

"Fujisawa-san! How…?" Mouri stood baffled,

"Otou-san!" Ran pointed at the now broken window, "The window glass is broken –!"

"Damn! They fled through the window?"

 _'No…_ ' Heiji smirked, finally understanding what had happened, ' _The culprit is still in the room! And…_ '

 _'…And now,_ ' Conan's thoughts matched the other detective's, ' _Now I know how the culprit started the fire in the garage while he was inside the house!'_

* * *

 **AN: How is it? Am I doing the story justice? Please let me know! Reviews are highly encouraging!**

 **.**

 **To winx club - First, let me ask : Are you a winx club fan? Coz I am a huge one! It was the first anime, I had ever watched, and I immediately fell in love with it:) I've also watched all six seasons of it and though the last two seasons left much to be desired, I was a faithful fan, so I watched them all! Geez, aren't I fangirling now :P Also, thanks for reviewing! Glad you liked my story! And no, I'm not changing p.o.v's. I might do so for one or two scenes - like the one where Heiji is tranquilized - 'coz then I certainly can't write the story from his perspective.**

 **To Mar - Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you are enjoying my story! And that you like the way I have portrayed Heiji and Conan/Shinichi! And, I'm definitely continuing it! I never abandon my stories!**

 **To Rockster - Thanks for reviewing! :) You are my new favorite reviewier :) They really encourage me to write faster! So, thanks, once again! Yes, 'There's only one truth!' and his pose while doing it is really 'badass' :P As for the better detective; that's hard to say. The first case is the only time Shinichi ever bested Heiji. Though one thing I will have to admit, Shinichi is more cool and calm and makes better strategies - like all those times he battled against the Black Organisation. Yup, all of them are 'fanatics':P Seeing how Heiji is an Ellery Queen fan, being in the midst of so many Holmes fan must have driven him mad!**

 **.**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **REVIEW!**


	6. Sleeping Heiji Deduction Show?

**AN: Here you go! The third and final part of the Holmes Freak Murder Case! Heiji finally finds out the truth!**

 **Also, one thing I would like to mention. Conan will think to himself in his thoughts as Shinichi, but while writing about him I will use the name 'Conan'. This is because, while in the body of a child, he** **is** **Conan. When Conan takes the antidote, I will only refer to him as Shinichi and not Conan.**

 **Hattori, of course, will call him Kudo, no matter what. Or 'brat' or 'kid' when Conan reminds him to be careful by kicking him in the shin :P**

 **Let me know how you liked it!**

 **Enjoy~**

 **.**

"Dialogues"

' _Thoughts'_

* * *

Chapter 6: Sleeping Heiji Deduction Show?

* * *

"Who could have done this?" the maid cried out in horror.

"It's the host," Mouri said firmly, "He's faked his death and is now killing us one by one. He's the one who attacked Fujisawa-san with an ice-pick and escaped form the broken window."

"Damn!" Fujisawa-san cursed, "Why did the host come after me?"

' _That_ ," Heiji agreed, ' _is a good question. Why are these particular people being attacked? First, the host, then Oki-han and now, Fujisawa-han. They certainly have to have some kind of connection…_ '

"And to think," Fujisawa-san continued, "I helped him publish that book!"

 _'Book?_ ' Heiji wondered, _'Now which book are they talkin' about? There are already too many involved in tha' case,'_

"Book?" Mouri inquired.

"It's a Sherlock Holmes book that the host published at his own expense," the man explained, "the title was 'The Scorn of Irene Adler'."

 _'Irene Adler?'_ Conan blinked, ' _That is odd…does this mean what I think it means…?'_

Heiji was tired of this, ' _This case has too many ties to Holmes. And what's that book gotta do with all this now? Can the book be the motive? I wonder…'_

"Ran," Mouri told his daughter, moving towards the window, "come, we're going after the host."

"You're wasting your time," Heiji told them harshly, "You can search outside all you want, but you won't find the culprit."

"What?"

"Take a good look at this chair," Heiji pointed out a chair from where it was placed at the table closest to the window, "it's oddly positioned because it's been squeezed into such a small space. That's proof that the culprit hurriedly pushed the chair in, _after_ breaking the window."

"You're right!" Conan chirped cheerfully.

 _'Damn!_ ' Heiji's eyes widened, ' _This kid again! I forget about him for a moment and he surprises me again!'_

"Look," Conan pointed out, "there are glass fragments embedded in it! The culprit must have used this chair!"

"But," Mouri tried to reason, "all that means is that the culprit tried to use the chair,"

"Ahou!" Heiji growled, "If you're trying to flee outside, why bother putting the chair back in?"

Mouri looked quite disgruntled at being told this by a kid, but he stayed quiet and listened.

"When the culprit broke the window," Heiji continued, "he probably held the chair with his bare hands. He wanted wipe his finger-prints off, but it was too dark. To hide the fact that he used the chair, he put it back. When the lights came back, he wiped off his prints while everyone was paying attention to Fujisawa-han's injury."

"W-when the lights came on?" Kawatsu-san repeated in bewilderment.

"Wait a moment!" Toda-san realized, "We are the only ones who were here when the lights came back!"

"That's right," Heiji nodded, "Now do you realise that the host is not the culprit? The host is dead and the culprit is one of us!"

Heiji's declaration was met with silence.

"Maid-san," Mouri said at last, "why did you say it was the fuse going out when the blackout occurred?"

"Ah, that was because a there was a sudden spark when I tried to plug in the coffee maker,"

True to her words, the outlet where the maid had planned to plug in was blackened due to high current. A thin wire was found to be wrapped around the plug of the coffee maker and that made it certain – the blackout was planned! Also, due to the circumstances, Togano-san and Kawatsu-san were the only ones who had been in the kitchen and had the opportunity to do it.

"That makes it clear!" Mouri chuckled, "The culprit is you Kawatsu-san!"

' _Oh?_ ' Heiji was surprised, ' _Did you rule out Togano-han because he is Oki-han's boyfriend?_ '

"Hey!" Kawatsu-san protested, "Hold on a minute! There were three other people in the kitchen at that time – the maid, Togano-san and your daughter, Ran-san –"

"Idiot!" Mouri growled, "Those three people have an alibi for the first incident – when the host's car fell off the cliff!"

' _Oh_ ,' Heiji shook his head, ' _if you're going by alibis…it seems to be correct. But, something still feels off…_ '

"You waited till the blackout occurred after arranging for it in the kitchen when no one was looking," Mouri was saying, "then using Fujisawa-san's lighter as a guide, you flung the ice-pick at him in the darkness!" Mouri turned to Heiji then, "Isn't that right, brat?"

"Yeah, you're right about that much," Heiji agreed, _'The method is as you explained it, but…'_ "…but, something doesn't seem to fit. Right, kid?"

"Yeah," Conan-kun agreed, so deep in his thoughts that he failed to notice that Heiji had actually asked him for confirmation, "unlike the first and second case, when Fujisawa-san was attacked, the culprit was careless and left clues. It could be that the culprit had not originally planned for the third case….Huh?"

Conan blinked and looked around to see everyone's astonished faces staring at him and then it came to him – he'd actually said all that aloud!

"Conan-kun!" Ran exclaimed in surprise.

"But, I'm just a kid," Conan scratched the back of his head and gave a beatific smile to the adults, "so I don't really know…ha…ha…haha…"

"Please," Ran implored, "don't pay him any attention, he just likes playing detective." Pulling Conan away, she told him, "Come with me, and don't bother the adults –"

 _'Something is strange_ ,' Heiji thought, ' _something is definitely odd about this kid. I just asked him on a whim, but the answer he gave was so confidently delivered! He's just not playing detective; he's doing full-fledged deductive reasoning!_ '

Heiji looked over to where Ran was talking to the kid, ' _The body and voice are completely different, but it is as if he were Kudo…_ ' Heiji paused in his thoughts, ' _Wait! Why did I think that? Kudo? And the kid? Now that I think about it…the first time I met Kudo, the kid was nowhere to be seen. And only when Kudo had disappeared that 'Conan' came back into the picture…_ '

Heiji was sure he was going mad now, ' _What am I even thinking? The kid might just be extraordinarily smart! Am I really thinking…? But why do I feel so uneasy?_ ' Heiji stared at Conan for a long moment, ' _Could he really be…?'_

Shaking his head rapidly, as if doing so would get rid of those thoughts, Heiji reasoned, _'Nah…couldn't be. No one can shrink or grow like that. The one who could do it would be able to carry out the perfect crime… It's better not to think of such silly things_.'

* * *

"Wait, Mouri-san!" Toda-san exclaimed, "If Kawatsu-san is the murderer, how did he set the garage on fire, when he was with the rest of us in the living room?"

"That's right!" Kawatsu-san agreed quickly, glad that someone was standing up for him, "And when the host fell off the cliff, the car accelerated!"

"He's right," Heiji acquiesced, "While I understand the second case, the first is still a mystery,"

"Eh?!" Toda-san was not the only one surprised at Heiji's proclamation, "You've figured out how the garage was lit on fire?"

"Aa," Heiji nodded.

"Don't trust him," Mouri grunted, "he's just a kid."

"You have no right to judge me!" Heiji scowled. Turning to the others, he said, "Anyway, I have four confusing points about the first case."

Although a mere teen, the fact that he had solved the second case – or so he said – and even had a hypotheses about the first case, thus the four confusing pints, made everyone turn their attention towards him, wanting to hear his theory.

Conan, on the other hand, watched him silently; wanting to know if the 'four doubts' Heiji had spoken of were the same ones he had.

"One, why the host was missing for the entire day; two, how the car sped up; three, the odd sound coming from the car that didn't belong to the air conditioner; four, the cloth covering the dashboard."

"A cloth?" Ran asked

"Yes," Heiji told her, "it covered the entire dash board."

Conan nodded along with that, _'However, that is not all. I just realized another confusing point, now that I recollect –'_

"Also," Heiji said, "another point that just struck me – the host had his hands firmly clasped around the steering wheel!"

 _'– yes,_ ' Conan agreed, ' _that is the final point. So far, we are on the same track. However there is something, a final piece of clue, which I have not joined yet. The picture is incomplete!'_

"Even though the road was bumpy," Heiji said, "the host managed to maintain his posture. He did not move at all."

"So?" Toda-san asked, "What does that mean?"

"It means," Heiji explained, "that by the time the host was placed inside the car, he was already dead and rigor mortis had already set in."

"Rigor mortis?"

"The human body begins to stiffen thirty minutes to two hours after death," Heiji elaborated, "and by nine to twelve hours the body becomes entirely stiff. The stiffness continues until thirty hours after death, after which it gradually becomes limp again at seventy hours after death."

Hearing a 'kid', as Mouri called him, speak of rigor mortis in such a comprehensive manner, stunned the listeners.

"If the host's body was completely stiff at 3:30 am today," Heiji continued, "means he was killed between 3:30 pm to 6:30 pm the previous day. He was killed just after mid-day."

Heiji paused then, placing his chin between his fingers in thought, "What I don't understand is why the killer felt the need to put him inside the car so early?"

"Maybe he wanted it to look like suicide?" Togano-san suggested, "The killer must have put him in the car and placed his hands on the wheel. So, when rigor mortis set in, it would look like he was driving the car. And then, he must have started the car after dinner. So one of you who left the room then must be the killer!"

The ones with no alibi for last night looked disgruntled.

"Why did the car speed up then?" Toda-san said angrily.

"Yeah," Kawatsu-san concurred, "the dead don't move!"

 _'The dead…move?!'_ Heiji and Conan looked at Kawatsu-san in surprise, his words giving the last clue needed to complete the picture.

' _Could it be…?_ ' Conan wondered silently, _'The trick the murderer used…'_

 _'Then, if this is the case,'_ Heiji realized, _'the murderer can only be that person. Only…I don't have any proof._ '

 _'Wait a moment!_ ' Ran's words made sense to Conan now, ' _Ayako-san was out in the corridor during lunch. If she saw something in that person's room…'_

' _I've got it!_ ' Both Heiji and Conan smirked triumphantly as the solution clicked in their minds.

"Ah, I know who the murderer is!" Mouri declared suddenly.

 _'Eh?_ ' Heiji blinked, ' _Does he really?'_

"It's you! Toda Maria-san!"

Heiji face-palmed internally, ' _What an idiot!'_

* * *

As Mouri babbled on about the fortune-teller hypnotising her victims to make them commit suicide, Conan sighed. That was impossible and if the older detective actually used his head, he'd realise that too.

' _Ah, I can't wait to put him to sleep with the sleeping dart_ ,' Conan thought, ' _only…'_

A glance at Heiji confirmed Conan's suspicions. Heiji, while focused on Mouri, kept looking at him from the corner of his eyes. Under his scrutiny it would be very difficult to conduct the 'Sleeping Kogoro Deduction Show'.

 _'Hattori already suspects me_ ,' Conan sighed, ' _or at least, he suspects that something is strange about me. He will be on the look-out certainly and might even see me while I speak in place of Occhan. I have to be careful. Or, perhaps…'_

* * *

"Ne! Ne!"

The moment Conan looked up at Heiji with his wide, seemingly innocent and highly curious, doe-like eyes; Heiji was on red-alert mode. A little drastic, but with what the kid usually spouted, disguised under that sugary tone and clueless face, there was nothing else he could do.

' _Yeah, kid,'_ Heiji narrowed his eyes, ' _let's see what ya have to say.'_

"What happens to the body's rigor mortis if the temperature is raised? Does it happen faster? If that's the case, it's easy to solve, right? You know it, don't you?"

 _'There!_ ' Heiji exclaimed in the privacy of his mind, ' _He keeps doing that! Asking me a question he already knows the answer to and dropping hints – for me to solve the case – like they're candy!'_

Looking down at the kid's hopeful face, Heiji contemplated his answer, _'He knows. He already knows who the murderer is. But…he wants me to solve the case? Why? Either way, this is one scarily smart kid. Or he is actually… Anyway, let's make it difficult for him.'_

"Who knows?" Heiji shrugged, hints of a smile dancing across his lips, "I'm stupid, so I have no idea what ya talking about!"

Heiji watched in amusement as Conan's face fell ever so slightly as the kid turned away from him.

 _'Well? What are you going to do now… **Conan**?'_

* * *

 _'Damn him_!' Conan grit his teeth, _'He knows, but he wants me to solve the case!'_

Frowning for a moment, Conan wondered what to do before he smirked, ' _Okay…if that's how he wants it…_ '

"I'm going to the toilet," Conan spoke serenely and walked out the living room door, closing it behind him.

"Oh, me too," Heiji said, following him.

Conan, hidden right behind the door, watched as Heiji peered about the corridor, "Eh, he's not here?"

Conan smirked and quickly tranquilized him. Heiji's eyes slipped closed almost immediately, the strong sleeping drug (organically safe for the human body though, the Hakase had assured him) spreading through his body very fast. The teen slumped to the floor, body in dis-balance. Thankfully, he landed upright, with his back to the door and face towards the audience.

It was in these moments that Conan appreciated his ability – perfect pitch. To recognise and identify a sound's frequency after hearing it only once was very handy, especially when he had to adjust the dial of his bow-tie speaker and get it right in one go.

"The comedy is over, old man," Conan spoke up, immediately drawing everyone's attention away from Mouri and Toda-san's argument and towards him.

Conan cringed inwardly at his thick kansai-ben, knowing that the dialect did not come out quite perfectly. But, employing every bit of acting skill he'd gained from his mother, he spoke confidently, making his audience focus on the words he spoke instead of his accent.

"I've figured out who da culprit is!"

"Eh?" Mouri blinked in surprise.

"Yes, the murderer," Conan carefully lifted one hand of Heiji's, keeping himself hidden from view, and pointed it forward, "the one who caused all three incidents, is you!"

"Eh?!" Mouri exclaimed in surprise and outrage, "Me?"

"Na," Conan said in exasperation, "not you. The one who is breaking out in a cold sweat behind you, Togano Kento-san!"

"W-wait a second!" Togano-san raised his hands in defence, "I was with you at the dining table when the host fell off the cliff! And when Ayako was killed –!"

BAM!

Mouri had stalked over to the sleeping Heiji and landed a hard blow on his head, quite similar to what he usually deals to Conan.

 _'Eeep!_ ' Conan panicked, ' _What's Occhan doing? He's going to wake him up!_ '

"That's exactly what happened, you silly brat!" Mouri said loudly.

' _Oh no!'_ Conan peeked at Heiji, ' _Did he wake up?_ '

"Dad!" Ran rushed over and pulled her father away, protesting against her father's harsh treatment.

Mouri ignored her, "Who do you think you're fooling, using that strange Kansai dialect? Besides, how did Togano-san start the car when he was with you in the living room?"

Conan, now assured that Heiji was not waking up anytime soon due to Mouri Oji-san's smack, spoke up, "That's right, it does appear impossible at first. But if you use a certain device to alter the course of rigor mortis…it becomes possible."

* * *

Heiji came to with only one conscious thought, ' _It hurts_ ,'

And it did. His head was throbbing painfully. The only reason Heiji kept still in this situation was because of the fact that he had no clue how and when he fell asleep. Even barely awake, Heiji's sharp mind had already started thinking, wondering why he was unconscious when his last action had been to…That's it!

' _I was following that kid and then…I don't know,'_ Heiji could now make out a faint voice.

People were talking, but Heiji could not decipher the words. Everything was hazy, something made him want to go back to sleep. But the pain was still there, as his scalp reminded him in short intervals. So, holding onto that pain, Heiji drew himself back to consciousness, just as he heard a voice – his voice – say something,

"The trick went as follows,"

 _'The hell?_ ' Heiji fought to keep himself still, ' _What in the world is_ _going on? T-that's **my** voice!'_

"The host, who was killed a day ago, was placed in the car with his foot secured to the brake, pushing it down. When rigor mortis set in, after half a day, the foot was stuck in place. This way, even though the engine was on and the car was on gear, the car didn't move."

Heiji had to admit it, he did feel a slight amount of fear at the perfect mimicry of his voice, ' _Even I can't make out the difference! But…what the hell is with his horrible accent!'_

Because it was clear to Heiji now, there was only one person who could be delivering this deduction – Conan. The kid who seemed to know too much.

' _I knew it! Something was strange about the kid,_ ' Heiji fumed, ' _and how dare he use me as a puppet to present the deduction! Well,'_ Heiji considered, _'at least now I know why it is called 'The Sleeping Kogoro Deduction Show'. The guy is literally sleeping!'_

"Then, right before dinner last night," Heiji's body-less voice continued, "the murderer opened the garage door. So, when the body started going limp again, the brake was released."

 _'He's spot on,_ ' Heiji admitted, ' _and this style…the voice may be mine, the speech pattern may be mine – but the way he says it, the inflection, the pause, the slowly building suspense he's creating…it reminds me of Kudo. Could the kid, Conan, actually be Kudo? The intelligence and deducing abilities certainly points to it…'_

"The murderer then came back to the living room and waited for the car to move –"

"You fool!" Mouri interrupted, "Rigor mortis doesn't go away till forty hours after death! Besides, like you said –"

Whatever Mouri was about to say was cut off by Conan and Heiji nearly smirked at the arrogance and disdain dripping off his words.

"What if the temperature was raised?"

' _Ha,_ ' Heiji snorted internally, ' _the question you were asking me before in that sweet voice. Just you wait, Kudo! After you finish this deduction…just you wait! Playing an innocent kid in front of me!_ '

"If the body is exposed to a temperature of about 35 degree Celsius," Conan continued in Heiji's voice (and butchered accent), "the speed of rigor mortis and its subsequent softening will accelerate, allowing the body to become limp within 24 to 30 hours."

Mouri turned silent at that.

"The host disappeared at about 10:00 pm two nights ago. Calculating till the time the car started moving – at 3:00 am today – that is 29 hours. The timing is just right. And the strange noise inside the car – it was the heater's! If it had been the air conditioner, there would be water droplets beneath the tires."

"Ah," Ran said, "that's why you were checking the tire tracks, right Hattori-kun?"

"Yes," Conan agreed, "and I found no water droplets anywhere."

"But," Mouri said, "that kind of trick would be easily exposed once we examined the body."

 _'Ahou!_ ' Heiji sweat-dropped, ' _Think before you speak, at least!'_

"True," Conan agreed in an annoyed tone, "which is why the host, along with his car, was sent off the cliff. No body, no examination."

"And the acceleration?" Toda-san asked.

"The host's foot must have slipped off the break while driving on the bumpy road," Conan theorised, "Also, the cloth over the dashboard was meant to cover the heater's display."

"I see!" Kawatsu-san nodded, "And if you witness the whole incident along with the others from inside the living room, you have a perfect alibi!"

"So, was that why Togano-san insisted Oki-san stay with him that time?" Ran asked sadly "He just wanted a witness?"

"Exactly,"

"Haha…haha…" Togano-san laughed, "Interesting. Your deduction sounds like something out of a mystery novel. But unfortunately, you have no proof."

' _Why, you –!_ ' Heiji was livid at the man's smug tone, ' _Do you feel no remorse? You just killed your own girlfriend too. Just because she had figured you out!_ '

"Besides," Togano-san said, "I was with everyone else when the garage went up in flames. No matter how you think, it is impossible for me to have lit the fire–"

"It's possible! And absurdly simple too!"

 _'Yeah_ ,' Heiji thought, ' _ya tell him, Kudo! …Wait, why am I cheering for him? I'm gonna pummel him later for using me like this! I ain't no puppet doll for him!_ '

"All you needed to tell her was: the first edition book of Holmes is hidden under the back seat of the car,"

Togano-san gulped; his eyes wide in fear.

"First edition book?" Mouri repeated, "What are you talking about? How's that related to the case?"

 _'Oi, Mouri-han_ ,' Heiji was tired of him, _'I know you're no Holmes fan, I'm not one either. But can't you keep track of what's going on in the case at least?'_

"Have ya forgotten?" Conan's tone was scandalized,

' _Heh_ ,' Heiji was amused, ' _c'mon, make it a lil' realistic. I wouldn't make such a reaction for a Holmes book!_ '

"The fuel was leaking and spread all over the garage floor. And the battery was dead. If Oki-han wanted to find da book in the darkness, and the lights weren't working, what would ya do?"

"Ah," Mouri pondered the question, "if it's dark, I'd…use a lighter or something… Oh! The lighter! She used her lighter to look for the book, thus setting the fuel on fire!"

"So she set herself on fire?" Kawatsu-san said, "But, why did he kill her? Wasn't she his witness?"

"Coincidently," Conan replied, "there were four more witnesses for him. There was no reason to keep her alive."

"But," Ran protested in a distressed voice, "isn't Ayako-san Togano-san's girlfriend? Then, why…?"

 _'Ah, Ran-san,'_ Heiji mourned, ' _the world is a cruel place…'_

"She figured it out!" Conan replied harshly, "She knew the rigor mortis trick and had the proof to implicate him!"

' _Oi! Oi! She's **your** girlfriend bro!' _ Heiji winced internally at his tone, _'Be a bit more gentle when you speak to her – wait, he's using **my** voice right now! Oi! Don't make me seem so insensitive, Kudo!'_

"He told her about the book then," Conan continued, "when she went to the toilet."

"That's why her attitude changed after that!" Toda-san said, "Impressive. You figured out that garage trick that killed her!"

"No," Conan denied, "that trick that killed her was actually meant for another person. It was fortunate for the killer that Oki-han also possessed a lighter. The trap was originally meant for Fujisawa-han!"

"What?" Fujisawa-san was shocked, "M-me?"

"Yes, didn't you find a card left by your door, telling you to go to the garage? However, he had to kill Oki-han using that trap, so he devised the blackout plan at the last minute in order to kill Fujisawa-san using an ice-pick."

"I see," Mouri muttered, "that's why there were so many clues left in the third case."

' _Huh_ ,' Heiji marvelled, ' _when the kid said the same thing about the clues some time ago, you scoffed at it and now when you realise it finally, I bet all of you have forgotten about Conan's deduction of it back then. Now that I think of it, no one really pays the kid a lot of attention. Geez, this kid is good at hiding himself. Kudo! I keep forgetting – Kudo! Not a kid…_ '

"Yes," Conan agreed, Heiji's voice taking on a more forceful inflection, appearing to be almost superior, "Therefore, he is the only one who could have committed all three crimes!"

If Heiji had any doubts before, they were cleared now, ' _That sentence is pure Kudo! There's no doubt about this, Conan-kun – a child who looks like a six year old – is actually Kudo!_ '

"If that's the case, show me your proof!" Togano-san demanded, a derisive tone coating his words, "If you're so sure, you must have some proof, right?"

"Huh? Didn't you know?" Conan said mockingly, "Oki-han saw it in your room yesterday – the proof!"

"Even if she saw something yesterday, she's not here to say it now –"

"Question 1: is Holmes is right-handed or left handed?"

"W-what the…" Togano-san faltered at the sudden question.

' _I've gotta agree,_ ' Heiji frowned ever so slightly, ' _What the hell is with the question suddenly? Just present the proof and be done with it!_ '

"Question 2: what is Dr Watson's wife's name?"

"What's with the question's all of a sudden?" Togano-san burst out.

"Oh? Have ya forgotten? These are the questions on the 1000 question Sherlock Holmes quiz sheet!"

' _Oh!'_ Heiji realised, ' _Is that what you're up to, Kudo? You want ta make him **confess** to the crime, don't ya?_ '

"Next," Conan continued in a menacing tone, "Question 241: what was the content of the message Holmes wrote using the Dancing Men?"

' _Geez_ ,' Heiji wondered, ' _did ya actually memorize all the questions, Kudo? No! Wait… if I remember correctly –_ '

"Ah," Togano-san tried to save face, "that question, I remember it well. The answer was: 'Come here at once'."

' _You're a fool_ ,' Heiji smirked, ' _to have fallen for such a trick. And an even greater one to have committed the murder, but mainly because you fell into this pit yourself. There was never any question like that!_ '

"There was no such question in the quiz sheet," Shimizu-san spoke up in the deafening silence.

Togano-san broke out in sweat, realising his mistake and that his one answer had managed to successfully convict him.

"The question regarding the dancing men was: accurately reproduce all the dancing figures from the story," Kawatsu-san said.

"Yes," Conan agreed, "that was a difficult question and an even harder one to forget. Isn't it odd that you don't remember it?"

"T-that is –" Togano-san tried to remedy the situation,

"The thing that Oki-han saw in your room," Conan continued, "when she went to copy off your quiz sheet, was your absence. You were never in that room! Naturally; since you were out in the garage with the host at that time, probably checking on the rigor mortis."

"So," Ran concluded, "the proof Ayako-san found in his room was…"

"That's right," Conan said, "a blank quiz sheet."

Togano-san gasped, his hands shaking as his whole plan and alibi was torn to shreds.

"Why didn't you answer any questions?" Conan asked him before answering it himself, "Because you knew it was pointless. The host was dead and would not be able to grade the quiz."

' _Well_ ,' Heiji sighed, ' _that's that. Case solved. He's got no escape now.'_

"If you still think I'm lying," Conan stated, "then bring it here! Your quiz sheet! Right now!"

Togano-san did nothing of the sort – he collapsed to the ground on his knees, cursing.

"You!" Fujisawa-san grabbed his collar, "Tell me! Why did you kill the host? And tried to kill me!"

 _'Yes,_ ' Heiji agreed. ' _That was one thing I haven't figured out either. What was his motive to kill two unknown people he'd never known before today? I want to know what he says…'_

"'The Scorn of Irene Adler'," Conan spoke up loudly in Heiji's voice, "The motive was probably the book you and the host published together."

' _Huh?_ ' Heiji was surprised, ' _That book Kanaya-han had published? What does that have to do with this?_ '

"What?" Fujisawa-san sputtered in disbelief.

"Wasn't Irene the actress who outwitted Holmes?" Ran asked.

"Yes," the maid agreed, "but the master wrote it off as Holmes faulty deduction…"

"I see!" Kawatsu-san commented, "Togano felt that the book ridiculed Holmes…"

 _'What?'_ Heiji was astounded, ' _All this – two murders and one attempted murder – for a book? All of them are crazy fanatics of Holmes, seriously! And no wonder Kudo figured out the motive – he's just as big of a fanatic as the others!'_

"Pfft, it's the opposite," Togano-san scoffed,

At his words, everyone was surprised. The opposite?

"Irene was the only woman in the world Sherlock admired and acknowledged," Togano-san said sadly, "I can't believe she would mock Sherlock!"

Fujisawa-san let go of him, finally understanding it.

"I couldn't forgive it!" Togano-san cried softly, tears gathering around his closed eyelids, "I couldn't…"

' _Fanatics_ ,' Heiji sighed, twitching slightly as his muscles protested, after being seated in one position for so long, ' _In the end, he cries and it's because of a book. To think he killed them for this…'_

Yawn!

Stretching his arms, Heiji made a huge show of 'getting up'.

"Ah, Hattori-kun!" Ran smiled at him, "That was amazing! You definitely deserve the title of 'The Great Detective of the West'!"

' _That seriously pisses me off_ ,' Heiji thought as he made a show of sheepishly rubbing the back if his head at her praise, ' _considering it was not me, but Kudo, who solved the case. But, I suppose, just this one time, I'll help you out…so that I can find out the truth behind all this_!'

"Of course," Heiji grinned at Ran, using the same horrible accent Kudo had, "a simple case like this is child's play for me!"

She smiled at him radiantly and went off, calling for her young charge, "Conan-kun!"

Heiji smirked and leaned against the door, waiting for 'Conan-kun' to show up. And sure enough, a moment later, the kid sidled out from behind the door.

"I'm right here, Ran-nee-chan!"

And, the sugar sweet tone was back.

"Hey," Heiji called out to him before he could run off,

When Conan looked up at him with an adorably confused face, Heiji narrowed his eyes.

"You're Kudo, aren't you?"

The reaction was immediate and very, very brief but Heiji caught it all the same. Conan's eyes had widened behind his glasses, face showing fear, horror and disbelief before it schooled itself into a politely surprised expression.

"W-w-what are you talking about?" Conan said with a small laugh, trying to disguise his stutter, "I'm a kid! Just a kid!"

' _That's not going ta work on me,_ ' Heiji crouched down; facing him directly, "Stop playing games! Do you think I'm an idiot? Your Kansai dialect is terrible!"

And truly, that was what had irked Heiji the most, after the whole putting-him-to-sleep part. He reached out to grab the kid, who was slowly inching away and instead got hold of the bow-tie. Turning it around displayed the most surprising thing of all.

"Oh!" Heiji's eyebrows disappeared into his hairline, "So this is the machine you used to imitate my voice?"

' _I have to admit,'_ Heiji thought as he admired the bow-tie, ' _it really is a great piece of work,_ '

Looking at Kudo's frantic expression, Heiji smirked, "I saw you using it out of the corner of my eye!"

"W-when did you figure it out?" Conan gave up the pretence finally.

' _Got'cha!_ ' Heiji's eyes narrowed as he let go of the machine, ' _Never believed you would fall for the same trick you used on Togano-han. To think you admitted it, when I never even saw you use the bow-tie…you're really panicking right now, aren't ya?_ '

And it was true. While the kid did not shake or tremble, his wide blown pupils and determined set of brows that seemed to say 'do your worst!' said it all. Kudo, for some unexplainable reason, was scared.

' _I knew it_ ,' Heiji thought, ' _something is definitely wrong. His sudden disappearance, the empty house, no one knowing where he is…something is definitely wrong._ '

Heiji decided to answer Conan's question instead of pressuring him, trying to ease tense the atmosphere, "…he is the only one who could have committed all three crimes." Heiji repeated the statement in Kudo's odd kansai-ben, grinning slightly, "Even though the dialect was horrible, the reasoning and expression were unmistakably that of Kudo Shinichi!"

His slightly teasing tone and open facial expression did the trick and Kudo relaxed.

"Don't be silly, I'm just a kid!"

…Okay. And Kudo was back to that again. What good was it going to do now?

As Heiji looked at him thoughtfully, Conan gave him a cherubic grin.

' _Gah_ ,' Heiji turned away, ' _it's embarrassing for **me** to look at Kudo when he's doing that 'cute kid' thingy.'_

Seeing Ran come into view, Heiji grinned, "Oh, I see, you're a kid, huh?" At Conan's nod, he got up and started walking towards her, "Hey, listen for a sec, will ya?"

Ran turned towards him, an inquiring look on her face.

"I've got a real interesting story to tell ya!" Heiji began, hilarity audible in his voice. Seeing that Kudo was still silent, he brought it up one notch, "You know what? The truth is…"

"WAIT A MOMENT!"

* * *

Mouri had walked down to the rail station to call for the police and transportation, once the sun had risen – and once he'd eaten breakfast of course, since the early morning snacks and coffee had been interrupted with a blackout and attempted murder. While the others had started packing up their belongings, Heiji and Conan had sat down in the front yard, far away from the house, for a long talk.

Keeping true to his word and due to Heiji's insistence and threats of telling Ran, Conan told him everything. Beginning with the trip to Tropical Land and the roller coaster murder, to the encounter with the men in black and his subsequent 'shrinking'.

"Oh, so you were shrunk by a poison, huh?"

Conan shrugged, "That's what they called it. No idea why it didn't work, but I'm glad for that."

"I'm glad for that too," Heiji said solemnly and Kudo gave him a small smile at that.

They were quiet for a while, as Heiji took in and processed all the information.

"So…" Heiji said after a while, "she's not your girlfriend then?"

"NO!" Conan all but shouted, his cheeks darkening to a bright red, "And the next time I see Sonoko, she's going to get it from me!"

Heiji chuckled, ' _Geez, I never realized it, but Kudo is hilarious_!'

The arrival of the bus, called by Mouri to get them back to town, stopped the conversation for a while but the two of them quickly occupied two seats further at the back and went back to talking.

"And in order to find information about the syndicate, you're living at the home of the girl you like?"

"W-well, I didn't say I liked her," Kudo muttered softly, blushing at the implication, "that tiresome girl… she's a nuisance."

Heiji grinned at his plaintive tone, "Oh?"

"Ara!" Ran rested her elbows on the back-rest of their seats and grinned down at them, "You two are getting along well now, aren't you? Looks like you finally became friends!"

"Oh…yeah!" Conan-kun chirped.

"So," Heiji smiled up at her, "want to know what Kudo said about you last time?"

Ran looked confused and curious while Kudo made frantic gestures at him to keep quiet.

Heiji just smirked and ploughed on, "He told me you were a real nuisance!"

Kudo groaned softly beside him, burying his face in his palms.

"A nuisance?" Ran's face scrunched up in confusion.

' _You bastard!_ ' Conan glared at him after Ran sat down in her seat.

Heiji simply grinned back unrepentantly, ' _That was for putting me to sleep!_ '

* * *

 **AN: How was it? Did you guys like it? Do let me know!  
**

 **.**

 **To Rockster -As you've said, Conan actually can commit a murder. It's his morals that prevent him from doing so. And Heiji acknowledges that too, as I've written it in this chapter :) And, yes, I am up to date on both the manga as well as the anime. So, yeah, the Akai Shuichi death plan was FREAKING AWESOME! It's true, Heiji is not quite involved in all the details. He is, however, aware of the F.B.I and halped out in the Kir arc too: Hondou Eisuke and Hondou Hidemi investigation was done partly by him. In this story, however, I'm going to show him as slightly more involved in the case. Like, Shinichi is going to consult him more often and discuss things with him better. 'Coz this is not just recounting the story, you know, it's a FANFICTION. So yeah, while there are no major plot changes, Heiji will be more closer to Shinichi than they show in anime and manga. It's going to be a really close bond.  
**

 **Huh? A game? I've heard of the crossover with Kindaichi Case Files, but not of the others... Hmm...That's really interesting. Pity, I never got to play either game :(**

 **Thanks for reviewing!**

 **To winx club - Thanks for reviewing! Good to know that you are loving it! It makes me happy that the audience is enjoying it :)**

 **To Vivian Graythorn - Thanks for reviewing! And about your query:** Also, to ask, after the revelation that Edogawa Conan Kudo Shinichi, are you going to still continue up to the most latest chapters including Heiji in it?. **Yes, I am. However, there will be slight changes. Like, more phone calls, a stronger bond between them. No major plot changes, but Heiji** **will be more closer to Shinichi than they show in anime and manga. I hope you keep reading my story and keep enjoying it!**

 **.**

 **All of you silent readers out there - I hope you are liking this story. If you are (and if not) do please let me know by reviewing! It does not take much time and highly encourages me to write faster! But, thank you all the same :)**

 **So...**

 **REVIEW!**


	7. The Masked Murderer

**AN: Hey there! With my exams starting soon, the next chapter will take much longer in coming out, but I already had this one written, so here you go!**

 **This chapter has quite a bit of Heiji's ramblings, so I do hope you'll enjoy it. I've tried to do justice to Heiji's thoughts and I hope it's come out well!**

 **Let me know how you liked it!**

 **Enjoy~**

 **.**

"Dialogues"

' _Thoughts'_

* * *

Chapter 7: The Masked Murderer

* * *

It had been an odd experience for Heiji.

With most boys his age, all he talked about was schoolwork – and that was rare, since he was the top student in the class – sports, girls, food and lastly, kendo. That was pretty much what all his conversations revolved around.

In that short bus ride with Kudo, he'd talked about the case, the mechanics behind the voice-changing bow-tie, the crime syndicate and Sherlock Holmes. And the conversation had never been more engaging! Talking about Sherlock Holmes – and that was certainly something to remark about – or any of the other odd topics had not felt like a bore; it had been a back and forth volley of witty comments, sarcastic remarks and genuine laughter. And while Kudo might have looked like a kid (Seven year old, Hattori! Seven! Not six!), Heiji could clearly see the seventeen-year old genius hidden behind the black framed glasses.

For once, Heiji did not have to stick to socially accepted topics – because murder and arson and kidnappings certainly didn't count – and it was…freeing. From the way Kudo had relaxed beside him, hands folded behind his head, cheery and loud tone absent, Heiji knew he felt the same. For his part, Heiji would have been glad if Kudo never used that sugary voice again – it was creepy! – but, as his rival had pointed out, it was necessary. It was part of the cover as Edogawa Conan, and along with his appearance, helped keep any suspicion at bay.

"Didn't work with me." Heiji had pointed out.

"It did at first," Kudo corrected with a smirk, "you paid not one whit of attention to me during your last visit."

Heiji had grumbled at that, "That's 'coz I was lookin' for ya! Not some kid in glasses!"

Kudo had only laughed at that.

It was when Heiji was half-way to Osaka on the bullet train, that Heiji realised he'd forgotten to get Kudo's phone number. While most seven year olds wouldn't own a phone, Kudo was a different case.

"Ah well," Heiji relaxed back in his seat, "next time then. And I've got to repair my phone too… at least the sim-card was not damaged."

And it was a long time after that, that Heiji realised what he'd said. ' _Next time? Does that mean…?'_

 _'…You two are getting along well now, aren't you? Looks like you finally became friends...'_

Ran's words echoed in his mind, ' _Yes, Ran-san. Maybe we are…becoming friends._ '

* * *

As soon as Heiji reached home, Kazuha and his mother had pounced upon him, asking if he was alright. Apparently, Kazuha had tried calling several times the past two days but had been unable reach as his phone had been broken.

"If you had not returned by tomorrow," Shizuka said, "I would have come there myself!"

Seeing the brief look of concern and then relief appear on his father's face, Heiji realized that they had truly been worried.

"Calm down, Okan, Kazuha! I just got caught up in a case," Heiji placated them, "and my phone was destroyed by the killer so that no one could call the police."

"Another case?" Kazuha said, "Every time ya go to Tokyo, you get caught up in a case!"

"Ah, well…"

"Let him sit down and relax, Shizu. Kazuha-chan." At Hattori senior's words, they finally let him settle down.

Half an hour later, Heiji had related the whole story to them, carefully omitting the fact that he'd been knocked out and put to sleep by Kudo.

"So, did you meet Kudo-san at all?" Shizuka asked in the end.

"Eh!" Kazuha exclaimed "Kudo again?"

"Yeah," Heiji ignored Kazuha and wondered what to tell his mother,

' _Now that I know just why Kudo has gone into hiding, I can't really speak of him so freely…no wait. Actually I can, I simply have to be careful not to mention where and when we met_. _Not talking about him suddenly would be more suspicious. I will simply have to keep going as if everything was – is – fine.'_

"Yeah," Heiji smiled, "I got to meet him. And you were right Okan, that guy would make a nice friend!"

Shizuka had smiled back at that. Kazuha, on the other hand, had looked surprised and contemplative. Heiji just shrugged and yawned.

"I'm going to bed," Heiji told them, "I've been up since two days because of that murder. I'm tired and sleepy. Don't wake me up unless there's an earthquake,"

Saying so, he disappeared into the house, Kazuha's chuckles echoing behind him.

* * *

The first thing Heiji did after waking up was visit the dojo. Practising kendo was a purely physical exercise that after years of practice did not need Heiji's full mental acuities. It would give him some much needed time to go over all he'd learnt about Kudo in the last few days.

The fact that a seventeen year old had been shrunken to a kid, had been de-aged by ten whole years, was unbelievable. However, it was true; Heiji had seen it with his own eyes. Kudo was trapped in a seven year old body. That he had, at the same time, managed to keep solving cases, under the guise of 'Sleeping Kogoro', was truly remarkable.

What was most concerning about the whole ordeal was the poisoning. Kudo's sudden metamorphosis into a seven year old had been due to a _poison_. From what he'd been told, two men in black had caught Kudo eavesdropping on their deal with some big-shot, shady business-man and decided that he had to be killed. He'd seen too much and had to be gone. That instead of dying, Kudo had _shrunk_ , was a blessing in disguise.

While Heiji could not deny the sort of danger Kudo was in, he had to admit that it was not really registering in him. Kudo had gone to great lengths to make sure no one ever found out about his survival; adopting a new identity, solving cases by using Mouri-han as his front; but that was _Kudo's_ doing. To Heiji, it did not truly feel real. And that vexed him.

Heiji was not in the equation at all, was not a part of the investigation, and was not concerned with the case. The danger Kudo felt every day was almost muted for Heiji. But as they stood, Heiji did not really have the right to butt into Kudo's case. Heiji had forcefully – and it was by force, Kudo would have never willingly told him – gotten the information out of Kudo, but even with the meagre knowledge he had, he was of no help.

Hell, Heiji did not even know _how_ to help.

Thus, there was only one thing to be done then – be there for him. Being stuck as kid and have everyone treat you like one would have been horrible for Kudo. Even though it was his cover, acting like a kid when he was _not,_ would be tiresome. So, Heiji could perhaps provide him some respite. Now that Heiji knew Conan was actually Kudo, there was no way he could treat him as a kid. In return, Kudo could drop his mask around him and be _Kudo_ , instead of Conan.

"Why don't we spar?" Heizo's sudden question startled Heiji out of his inner musings.

"Oyaji," Heiji greeted his father and took a stance in front of him.

Bowing, the two immediately started swinging their shinai (wooden sword) at each other, trying to find a gap in the other's defences.

"You seemed…tense," Heizo said in between his strikes, "when you began. Something troubling you, son?"

"You were watching?"

"Aa, you have improved."

Heiji grinned, "I mean to win back the championship title this year,"

"I'm glad to hear it."

A few minutes later and after Heiji's subsequent defeat, the two of them sat down on a low bench, carefully removing their protective guard.

"Is it about Kudo-kun?"

"Huh?" Heiji was startled at his father's question, "Kudo? Why do you say that?"

"Hmm…whatever it is that was troubling you, seemed to have originated in Tokyo. And if it is not that case you got entangled in, it has to be Kudo-kun. You did go there to meet him after all."

No matter how much Heiji would have liked to tell his father everything, this was not a mere criminal they – Kudo – was dealing with. It was a whole crime syndicate. The police, despite all their brilliance, were not equipped to deal with this. If anything, this was a job for the Secret Police – the Japanese Public Safety Bureau.

Plus, Kudo had not wanted anyone involved, not when his very life was at stake. Everyone had to be ignorant of this investigation; because, the only way to go about solving this case was from the shadows.

 _'I'm sorry, Oyaji,_ ' Heiji mourned at the loss of his own dependence on his father, _'but I think it is time. I can no longer rely on you to take care of the bigger, dangerous cases. This case – Kudo's case – must be solved in absolute secrecy, no one must know about it. Anything about it. From this point onwards…I shall tell you nothing_.'

Heiji might not have been really involved in the case, but he was wrong to think that he was no longer a part of it. Now that he knew the truth behind Kudo's disappearance, he was automatically involved in it. Even if all he could do was maintain the secrecy that shrouded Kudo and the circumstances surrounding his disappearance, Heiji would do it.

"Nah," Heiji dismissed his father, "nothing much, really. Just, talking to Kudo is an experience."

"Oh?"

"Yeah," Heiji grinned at him, "he's a real Holmes' nut-case though, got no appreciation for Ellery Queen!"

Heizo smiled, "It's good to know that you're getting along. But Heiji, you should know that you can tell me if something is troubling you…"

' _Of course, Oyaji wouldn't believe it so easily,'_ Heiji thought as he nodded at his father, ' _but, my decision is already made. I can tell you nothing, Oyaji. No matter how much you tell me that I can come to you with anything, I can't. Not when they are not my secrets to tell…'_

"I know," Heiji assured his father. ' _I know…but I can't…'_

* * *

After that talk with his father, everything settled back into normalcy. Kazuha had poked and prodded him about Kudo, of course, and he'd told her everything there was to tell about his rival's deductive abilities. But, for some reason, she'd not been satisfied.

"That's it?" Kazuha had said in disbelief, "all you talked about with Kudo was the case and your favourite detective books? Nothing else?"

"Of course, what else would we talk about?"

But seeing how she was clearly interested in Kudo, Heiji had obliged, telling her all he'd learnt from his last two visits and whatever Ran-san had told him that time he'd stayed at their place.

It was a quite some time later that his father brought up a rather distressing topic during dinner.

"He's an old friend of mine, Nagato Dousan," Heizo told his son, "Chairman of the Nagato Group,"

"Oh?" Heiji said, "He's wealthy then?"

"Yes, and quite used to doing things his own way too,"

Seeing Heiji's confusion, Heizo elaborated, "He's been asking my help in looking for a woman – his first love, apparently."

Heiji choked upon air before letting out gales of laughter, "Geez, are you serious, Oyaji? He's asking you, the Chief Superintendent of Osaka police, to look for a woman?"

"I've managed to persuade him to hire a detective for that," Heizo told his son dryly, "there's another matter of concern though, that I will look into for him."

"Another matter?"

"About a few suspicious sounds he's been hearing in his house. It's disturbing enough that he's asked me to look into it."

Heiji hummed, "So you're going there personally, then?"

"Yes, before that, however, I need to recommend a detective to him. You know, for looking for his 'first love',"

"Eh?" Heiji was surprised, "What's wrong with that? There are plenty of detectives you know who can take up that kind of job!"

"I don't suppose _you_ will agree to take that job?"

"Nah!" Heiji looked scandalized, "Me? Look for his lady love? Oyaji, do think before you tell me take up such jobs!"

Heizo chuckled at his son's dramatics, "Which is why I'm in a fix. You see, Nagato doesn't live in Osaka, his house is on the outskirts of Tokyo."

"Oh!" Heiji smirked, _'Tokyo, huh? If it's Tokyo, then that detective will be there…'_ "Then that's problem solved!"

"Is it?" Heizo asked curiously.

"Of course, recommend Mouri-han to him!"

"Mouri Kogoro, I assume?" Heizo looked deep in thought, "Well, he seems competent enough to be hired by such a wealthy house…what is your personal opinion on him? You have met him twice, haven't you?"

Heiji nodded, _'Mouri-han is not the sharpest tool in the box, but the 'Sleeping Kogoro' – Kudo – is the best detective I could recommend to anyone. Plus, if Mouri is called, then Kudo will come along and this might just prove to be an interesting case. If Nagato-han is contacting Oyaji because of those suspicious sounds he's been hearing, this case might turn into something big. Kudo will certainly appreciate a good mystery!'_

"He's good, Mouri-han, that is. Well suited for the job. He'll be able to solve the case with lightning speed! Really, Oyaji, he's the best detective you could recommend from Tokyo!"

"Hmm, if you say so,"

"Great," Heiji smiled, "then I'm coming along with ya, Oyaji!"

"Eh?" Shizuka, who'd been silently listening to their conversation, spoke up, "Wait a moment, Hei-chan! When was this decided? You're going off to Tokyo again?"

Heizo nodded at this wife's question, "I'm certain there's no detective called Kudo involved in _this_ case. Why the sudden interest?"

"Er…" Heiji faltered, _'Damn, that's true…_ ' "Well, I guess I'll just tag along with Oyaji to try and see what Nagato-han's other 'problem' is…"

Seeing his parents disbelieving expressions, Heiji modified, "Have I told you about Conan-kun?"

"Conan-kun?" his mother repeated, "No, who is he?"

"The little guy is Mouri-han's ward, really great guy!"

"Oh?" Heizo was surprised, "How old is this 'Conan-kun'?"

"Seven."

His answer flabbergasted his parents. Seven year old kid and Heiji wants to go all the way to Tokyo to meet him?

"He must be something…different," Shizuka said, "if you're actually friends with a child."

"He is, Okan, he is," Heiji nodded, "so, can I came along now?"

"Well," Heizo said, "I might not be able to stay for long either way. I think it will satisfy Nagato if I leave my son with him, along with a few officers, to care of that disturbance in the night."

"That a yes, Oyaji?"

"Yes. And I do want to hear more about this 'Conan-kun' later. I thought it was Kudo you went to see in Tokyo…"

Heiji groaned, "Yeah, yeah. Conan-kun is just a distant relative of Kudo, so he's pretty like his cousin."

 _'Geez,_ ' Heiji thought as his mother pestered him on more details about Conan, ' _perhaps I should have just stayed quiet. But Conan is like a distant relative of Kudo in a way, so I guess it's alright…'_

* * *

The Nagato family had a beautiful house. And even more beautiful gardens. Heiji had only taken a cursory look around the place, the pond in the middle of grounds and the holes made around it for planting new plants, catching his attention. His admiration for the interior of the house was certainly higher than the exterior though.

Heiji was looking about the house when heard a familiar voice – Mouri Kogoro had arrived. And if he had come, then Kudo was sure to be there too.

"Oyaji!" Heiji beckoned his father, "Mouri-han is here, why don't we go and meet him?"

Heizo raised an eyebrow, "Yes, I would like to see this detective you've been singing praises about since the past few days –"

' _I've not been singing praises about **him**_ ,' Heiji groaned, ' _but about Sleeping Kogoro, which, despite the fact that you will never learn the truth about it, are two wholly different people!'_

"– and of course, that little boy, Conan-kun,"

Heiji grinned at that, _'Yup, it's been a while since we've seen each other Kudo._ _I wonder, have you told Ran-san about who you actually are by now?'_

From outside the room, they could make out Mouri's voice, "Anyway, who is the old friend that recommended me?"

"It is I!" Heizo pushed the door open. "My son kept telling me about your detective work!"

Behind his father, Heiji face-palmed, ' _Did you have to mention that, Oyaji? Don't go about giving the man a big head!_ '

"And you are?" Mouri asked in confusion.

"The Chief of Osaka police, Hattori Heizo-kun!" Nagato Dousan-san introduced.

"Eh!" Mouri let out a gasp of surprise, "Chief of Police of Osaka!"

"He's the one who comes on T.V. whenever there's a big case in Osaka!" Ran said.

' _Yup!'_ Heiji smiled in pride, ' _That's my old man!_ '

When his father made no move to go inside the room, standing still at the doorway, Heiji simply peeked around him. Taking the hint, his father moved in, letting Heiji look around properly. Spotting Kudo standing next to Ran-san, looking at Heizo with comprehension, Heiji called out in greeting,

"Yo, Kudo! How have ya been?"

His simple sentence brought about a great deal of varied reactions. Kudo's eyes widened comically and his mouth fell open in horror. The Mouri's were simply surprised to see him, clearly not having expected his presence.

"Hattori Heiji!" Ran and her father exclaimed simultaneously.

"And," Ran looked at him as if he'd lost his screws, "what does he mean by 'Kudo'?

Her father looked about the room at her question, clearly trying to spot the detective brat his daughter was talking about.

Conan let out a high pitched sound, "Aaah!"

Waving his arms about in front of Ran, Conan tried to dissuade her line of thought, before waddling over to Heiji and pushing at his legs, making him stumble backwards towards the wall.

"What? They don't know about it yet?" Heiji asked in surprise, _'I thought he would have told Ran-san now that I have learnt of his secret…'_

"Of course not, you idiot!' Conan hissed angrily in a whisper.

"You just said 'Kudo', so does that mean…?" Ran asked, an odd emotion in her voice.

Conan nudged his leg sharply with his elbow and Heiji quickly tried to remedy the situation.

"Ah, n-no, I said 'kurou' (troubles)," Heiji rubbed his head sheepishly, "you know, like, thanks for taking the trouble to come here!"

His father, immersed in conversation with his friend, paid no attention their talk. Ran looked slightly relieved and at the same time, disappointed – Heiji had no idea why those particular emotions – while Mouri senior simply huffed in annoyance.

"Always playing around…" he grumbled.

"Oh, you're entertaining guests, are you, Otou-sama?"

The two daughters, Nagato Nobuko and Nagato Yasue had entered the room then. The eldest, Nobuko, was 39 years old and the second daughter, Yasue, was 32 years old.

It turned into a spite session then, when Nobuko started accusing their father's secretary, Hyuuga Miyuki, of trying to steal the family money by marrying their brother and heir to the family, Nagato Hideomi.

"And who might you be?" Nobuko rudely asked Mouri when she spotted him.

"I'm a detective," Mouri replied, looking at the woman in distaste.

"A-A detective?" Nobuko gasped.

"Why would such a person be here?" Yasue asked in surprise.

"The chairman has called him here to look for his first love –" Miyuki-san said,

SLAP!

"I didn't ask _you_ ," Nobuko sneered at Miyuki,

Heiji and the others watched in shock as Nobuko landed a smack on Miyuki, sending the papers in her hand and the fountain pen she held, flying onto the bed. She herself landed across Dousan-san's bedridden legs. Miyuki cradled her cheek before grabbing at the fountain pen, holding it close to her as if it was something precious.

"You still have that dirty fountain pen?" Nobuko said derisively, "I don't care if it's a memento of your father or not, but it gives me the creeps,"

 _'What a foul woman,_ ' Heiji thought, ' _to think she is mocking Miyuki-han for simply holding a pen in great regard_ ,'

"You should be careful, Yasue," Nobuko turned to her sister, "she might steal away your precious Mitsuaki-san!"

With that, Nobuko left the room, her younger sister behind her, protesting at her harsh words.

"I'm sorry for that Hyuuga-kun," Dousan-san told his secretary, "she's just a bit irritable that she hasn't found someone yet…"

' _With that kind of personality, she'll never find someone,_ ' Conan thought dryly.

"I'll leave for the office now, then," Miyuki-san said.

"Oh, by the way," Dousan-san said before she left the room, "I'll be making the announcement tonight. But if you're just pitying my son then…"

"It's not pity," Miyuki denied, "it's fate that we would be together. After all, we've been bound by the bonds of flame for a long time."

 _'Bonds of flame?_ ' Heiji was confused, ' _She and her to-be-husband? I never understand women. Why can't they describe their romance in clearer words?'_

* * *

Heizo and Dousan-san spoke of their time together in the kendo club, Mouri and entourage listening attentively. Soon, the talk turned to the case at hand,

"Oh, Heizo, about that matter…" Dousan trailed off,

"Ah, yes," Heizo nodded, "I've already told the guards to check on that,"

It was a little past three o' clock, when the door opened again. A man, his face covered completely in bandages, leaving only one eye visible and wearing a woollen hat to cover his hair, appeared.

"W-who's that?" Heiji asked in surprise.

"Oh, that's my son, Hideomi," Dousan smiled, "his face was badly disfigured in a fire when he was in high school. With the current state of cosmetic surgery, he could have it treated, but he keeps refusing."

Nagato Mitsuaki, son-in-law and husband of Nagato Yasue, came to stand beside him.

"Well," Mitsuaki smiled at his brother-in-law, "thanks to that accident, you finally found happiness, right, Hideomi?"

 _'Happiness?_ ' Heiji wondered, ' _And a fire…was this what Miyuki-han meant by bonds of flame? This must be the son she is marrying…did they meet due to that accident?_ '

Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say, because Hideomi immediately turned and left the room.

"Oi," Mitsuaki called out, "What did I say now, to make you mad?"

Mitsuaki then moved forward to present Dousan with a gift, wishing him a happy birthday.

 _'It's his birthday today?'_ Heiji was surprised, ' _I didn't know that._ '

"Well, I'd be quite happy," Mitsuaki told his father-in-law, "if you gave me the chairmanship as a return gift." Seeing his surprised and shocked face, Mitsuaki laughed, "I'm joking!"

He quickly left the room after that, leaving behind an awkward silence.

"Well," Heizo began, "I'll be heading back to Osaka, soon,"

"Eh!" Dousan exclaimed, "You're not staying to celebrate my birthday tonight? Also, there's that other matter as well…"

"Don't worry," Heizo smirked, placing a hand upon Heiji's head, applying slight pressure to make him bow politely in front of Dousan, "I'll leave him here in my stead,"

' _Leave me here, huh?'_ Heiji thought dryly, narrowing his eyes at his father, ' _Weren't you the one who was not so keen on me coming here in the first place?_ '

"He's still a pup, but he has a sharp mind. I'm sure he'll be a good helper to Mouri-tantei,"

' _What are you comparing me to exactly, Oyaji?_ ' Heiji thought with slight annoyance, _'Pup? Am I one of your police hounds now? And wait a sec – me, a **helper** to that old man? If there's any case here, it will be solved by **me**! And Kudo too, I suppose…'_

* * *

Heiji bid his father good bye at the gates and decided to head in and to talk with Kudo. He had disappeared however, Ran-san had wanted to see the house and Kudo had accompanied along.

' _Geez, Kudo_ ,' Heiji sighed, ' _Can't ya leave her alone for a while?'_

With nothing to do, Heiji had gone to the library to check out the books. He must have dozed off, because he next time he opened his eyes, it was nightfall.

"Ah, Hattori-sama!" a maid called out to him as he left the library, "The master will be beginning his party in his room now, please come along."

The party got along fabulously. Hideomi was strangely absent and Nobuko left half-way through. Mitsuaki went over to call Hideomi though, after Dousan had announced Hideomi and Miyuki's engagement. Nearing ten o' clock, the only ones left in the room were the Mouri's, Heiji, Conan, Yasue-san, Miyuki-san and the butler. The master of the house, Dousan-san, had already fallen asleep on his bed and the guests were trying to quietly wrap up the party.

As Heiji was drinking his juice, he felt a tug on his sleeve.

"Oi, Hattori!" Conan whispered, "Hurry up and tell me what's going on!"

"About what?" Heiji adopted a curious look as he crouched down to face Kudo.

"You must know, right?" Conan pointed out, "The _real_ reason we're staying over tonight? You're the one who made us come here, after all."

Heiji grinned before making a dismissive gesture, "No special reason!"

' _Let's just mess with him for a moment_ ,' Heiji thought, giving Kudo a wink, "I wanted to see you, so I called you!"

"You punk!" Conan narrowed his eyes before bringing his wrist to eye-level and snapping open the lid of his watch.

The cross-hairs were now clearly visible to Hattori, _'So this is the device that shot me a dart to put me to sleep last time? And geez, does he have to threaten me with that?_ '

"I'm kidding!" Heiji chuckled, "The truth is –"

Tring! Tring!

The phone cut off anything Heiji had been about to say, drawing their attention it. The butler, Take Kuranosuke, received the call.

"Hello?"

The speaker on the other side, Mitsuaki, spoke with an urgent tone, "This is Mitsuaki. Can you get father on the line?"

"The master is already asleep. And we're all trying to retire for the night…"

"Hideomi's missing! I can't find him!"

"Eh?"

Heiji was curious now, what was the person on the other side of the phone saying, to bring about such a panicked look on the butler's face?

"AAAAAHHH!"

The loud scream of terror that echoed from the receiver was audible to everyone in the room.

"Mitsuaki-sama?"

' _That was Mitsuaki-han?'_ Heiji thought furiously, ' _Why did he scream? Where is he?'_

The butler, too scared to be of any use, gladly handed the phone to Mouri, "Hey, where are you now?"

The voice was now loud enough to be heard by everyone, "I'm in the room right below you! Someone turned off the lights and stabbed me! AAAHH!"

Heiji, Conan, Mouri, the butler and Miyuki-san immediately opened the window and rushed onto the balcony.

"Mitsuaki-san!" Mouri called out, "Are you alright? What's going on?"

They peered down to the balcony below, just to see a man – his face was covered with bandages and he was holding bloody a knife in his mouth by the back of its blade.

Horrified, Heiji, Mouri, and Conan quickly left the room with the butler.

"We have to stop him!" Mouri cried out.

At that, Ran and Yasue-san joined them as they ran down the stairs to the room below.

Miyuki-san had collapsed in shock, "Hideomi-san! Why would he –?"

Heiji paid no attention to her, her fiancé was no doubt trying to flee now. They had to catch him first!

"Damn!" Mouri tugged at the door, "This is locked from the inside!"

"I'll get the spare key!" the butler said before running off.

Heiji locked eyes with Conan, "I'll be outside with the security!"

Conan nodded and Heiji took off, trusting Kudo to handle matters here. He quickly alerted the guards, who spread themselves around the perimeter of the grounds to make sure no one left the place. When he ran back to the room, Yasue-san was crying inside. Mouri hovered uncertainly around her, trying to comfort her with words. Seeing Kudo at the balcony, Heiji made his way over.

"What happened?"

Kudo jerked his chin towards the balcony, "Look down there,"

Down there, impaled upon the pointed tips of the iron fence, was Nagato Mitsuaki's dead body.

"Damn," Heiji cursed, "he's dead."

"Aa," Conan agreed, "and look at this. This rope has been tied around the balcony railing; it almost reaches the ground. The killer must have escaped this way."

"Well," Heiji stated grimly, "I alerted the guards almost immediately, he cannot leave the place. The killer is here, within this manor and its grounds."

"True," Conan agreed, "but the problem is the bandages,"

"You're right. It could have been anyone under that wrapping," Heiji shook his head, "It looked like it was Hideomi, but put on a few bandages that cover your whole face, and we would never know…"

"Well, nothing to do now," Conan sighed, "the police has been called. When they remove the body from the fence, we might get some more clues,"

Heiji nodded in agreement, the two of them trudging down the stairs side by side, making their way to the grounds. While Heiji had been glad at the prospect of meeting Kudo again, getting involved in a murder case was not truly a nice meeting. It did allow them to work together, but seeing that it was at the cost of someone's death, did not make Heiji feel good.

They came to a still in front of the iron fence. Heiji looked up at the body, "That must have been one painful death,"

"Aa," Conan said sadly, "his expression though – it is what is truly painful to look at."

Mitsuaki-san had shock painted over his features, his death had come to him as a complete surprise and Heiji felt sorry for that man.

 _'Don't worry,'_ Heiji vowed, ' _we'll catch him. That masked murderer, we'll catch him. With both of us on this case, there's no escape for him!_ '

* * *

 **AN:** **How was it? Did you guys like it? Do let me know! Surprisingly, it has gotten more difficult to write now that Heiji knows the truth about Shinichi, perhaps it's something to do with the huge amount of information I have to keep in my mind while writing his thoughts. Can't write him as knowing too much too, since it's a long time before Heiji actually gets involved with Shinichi's case.  
**

 **.**

 **To Mystery0028 - Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad to know that Heiji measured upto your expectations!**

 **To Rockster - Thanks for reviewing. And let me tell you, I don't mind the long reviews at all! In fact, it is quite nice to read! Also, about english dubbed, I saw only one episode, the first, and decided that seeing somethings written backwards (like Tropical Land) was not to my taste and so many japanese jokes get lost in translation! So yeah, english sub for me :) Actually, I'm not very sure if it actually was Mouri who woke Heiji up. I just thought that he was, based on the fact that there was nothing else that could have done it. The dart missing him completely didn't strike me at all! So, thanks for letting me know that I was correctly portraying it. Hope this chapter and the case's backstory is well explained too... Just finished the series? That's great! If I have to say, even more amazing, after Akai's death plan of course, was the plan to fool Bourbon. The way Amuro deduced it was mindblowing, but knowing what kind of action he would take and counter-acting against it, that plan by Conan was awesome! That's a lot of games! No, while I do enjoy games, I prefer watching anime or reading the manga. I try to do both simultaneously, read the chapter corresponding to the anime, that is.  
**

 **Yeah, I saw the crossover game on Youtube, both Hajime and Conan do have the same ending, but since I've no idea about the Hajime Kindaichi case files, there parts that didn't make much sense to me at all :(**

 **Thanks for reviewing! Hope you liked this chapter :)**

 **To winx club - Thanks for reviewing! I took your request into account and tried to show Heiji's thoughts on Shinichi's shrinking. I hope I did a good job on it! Your opinion will matter the most for that part, so do let me know! It's also nice to know you are enjoying Heiji and Conan's interactions! :)**

 **.**

 **All of you silent readers out there - I hope you are liking this story. If you are (and if not) do please let me know by reviewing! It does not take much time and highly encourages me to write faster! But, thank you all the same :)**

 **So...**

 **REVIEW!**


	8. Working Together

**AN: I'm back! Not that I'd gone for long...but the next part will definitely take a long time, so apologies in advance! Exams have now officially begun, so yeah, I'm taking off writing for the next couple of days.  
**

 **OH! By the way, this chapter will have a lot of dialogues between Heiji and Conan that are not in anime or manga, so they're all mine. Just thought to let you know :)**

 **IMPORTANT :- There might be a point in this chapter, where some of you may think "The hell is Heiji thinking!?" Let me say this now, Heiji is as human as the rest of us. He is bound to have insecurities. But he _will_ overcome them and that is exactly why Heiji and Shincihi become true friends. Equals. If Heiji continued to idolize his rival, they would've never been so close.**

 **But, I will admit, I'm a little worried as to how those thoughts came out. I hope it sounds reasonable for Heiji to be thinking that way. Do let me know!**

 **That's all! :)**

 **Let me know how you liked it!**

 **Enjoy~**

 **.**

"Dialogues"

' _Thoughts'_

* * *

Chapter 8: Working Together

* * *

The moment the coroners were done investigating the body, Yasue-san dropped onto her knees next to him, tears still pouring down her cheeks.

Megure-keibu had arrived on scene with his team and had heard the whole story from Mouri.

"Are you certain the killer was Hideomi?" Megure asked Mouri.

"Yes," Mouri nodded seriously, "we could see him clearly –"

"You're mistaken!" Miyuki-san, Hideomi's fiancée protested, "Hideomi-san would never do something like this!"

' _She has a point_ ,' Heiji agreed, ' _We can't be sure it is Hideomi_ …'

"Hey, Hattori!" Conan hissed, "Do you see it?"

"Huh?" Heiji crouched down to his level, "See what?"

"On Mitsuaki-san's hand – it's not very big…but there's a little mark there. Red, like blood."

"Hmm," Heiji narrowed his eyes, "You're right –"

"I'm going to check it out," Conan declared before scampering off, ducking beneath outstretched hands and weaving around the police-men to go and inspect the body.

"Oi!" Heiji grumbled, ' _Yeah, just leave me here, won't ya?'_

Seeing Yasue-san, Mitsuaki-san's wife, complain loudly how the killer was definitely Hideomi – didn't they all see him? So how dare Miyuki-san say that it wasn't him? – Heiji sighed.

 _'I guess I'll let Kudo handle the physical examination of the body. First, I gotta get the police on the right track.'_

"Miyuki-san is right," Heiji spoke over Yasue-san's wails.

The Inspector turned to see who'd spoken, his eyes widening when he caught sight of him.

 _'Yep, it's me again, keibu-han,_ ' Heiji said, "All we saw was a face covered in bandages. Who's to say it really was Hideomi-han under that?"

"Bandages?" Inspector Megure echoed.

"Yeah, Hideomi had burn scars all over his face," Mouri explained.

"We saw the killer at 10:00 pm," Heiji told the Inspector in detail, "but all we saw was a man holding a knife in his mouth, his face covered in bandages and trying to find a way to escape. After which, when we reached the room – it was locked and we had to get a spare key – he had disappeared and Mitsuaki-han's body was found."

"We?" Megure questioned the general term,

"Myself and Ran, Conan, Yasue-san and the butler," Mouri expounded.

"I went to alert the guards," Heiji offered, "I didn't enter the room with them,"

"What about Miyuki-san?" Megure asked.

"I had to stay behind to watch the Nagato-san. When I heard Yasue-san scream, I came down, leaving Ran-san to watch over the master," Miyuki explained

"Then who went to get the spare key?" Megure asked in slight confusion.

"I did," the butler answered, "I keep the spare keys in the storage at the end of the hall-way, but because of my frail health, it took me nearly 5 to 6 minutes,"

"Hmm, so the victim was first stabbed to death then thrown off the balcony?"

"Maybe," Mouri hedged.

The Inspector gave Mouri an unimpressed stare before asking out loud, "Does anyone know where Hideomi-san is at the moment?"

The butler shook his head, "We searched everywhere, but we couldn't find him,"

' _Yeah,'_ Heiji narrowed his eyes, ' _that is the most important thing. With his prolonged absence, it only increases his guilt. And where in the world could he be? The guards never saw anyone leave the place! He has to be around here somewhere…Or did they miss him? Has he already escaped the place?_ '

"Well," Megure sighed, "we've already found the knife, bandages, his hat and the rope he used to escape. We'll find the culprit soon –"

"Ne!" Conan chose that moment to call out in his loud, childish voice.

Heiji perked up instantly, wondering what had come to light, ' _Did the body give you any more clues, Kudo?'_

"What's this wound on the back of the victim's hand?" Conan asked in curious manner, face scrunching up in cute confusion.

Heiji snickered mentally; now that he was aware of the truth, Kudo's acting never failed to amuse him.

"It looks like a stab wound." Conan spoke in apparent realization.

BAM!

Mouri's fist connected solidly with Conan's head, "Don't mess about with the body!"

' _Ouch, that had to hurt_ ,' Heiji winced in sympathy.

As he watched Kudo gingerly rub his head, Heiji suddenly realised how difficult it actually was for Kudo to investigate when stuck as a child. To most adults, it looked like he _was_ simply fooling about.

"Nonsense," Mouri said once he'd examined the wound Conan had pointed out.

 _'Well_ ,' Heiji considered, ' _At least his childish questions are important enough that Occhan and the police look into it. Whether they draw the right conclusions or not…well that is a different matter,'_

Kudo quickly ambled up next to Heiji after that, wearing a rather disgruntled expression and staying as far away from Mouri as possible.

"So?" Heiji asked, "What else did you find out?"

"Apart from the wound from the iron spike, he's got a stab wound on the left side of his chest," Kudo nodded towards the body, "I asked Tome-san – he's the chief forensic investigator – and he told me that the wound was about 5 cm deep,"

"Five centimetres, huh?" Heiji's eyebrows rose, then, "You seem pretty familiar with the coroners. The police on the other hand…"

Conan grinned at him, "Nah, I don't really need the police's attention to deduce, do I? But the coroners sometimes do have information that comes in use; best to make friends with them instead. At first they were hesitant to tell me things, now they hardly bat an eyelash."

Heiji shook his head at Kudo's subtle manipulation, _'Seriously, this guy…'_

Just then, another officer Heiji had come to recognise as Detective Takagi, arrived on scene, "Megure-keibu! I've just confirmed it from the mansion's security cameras! No one left after the crime!"

"Then, that means the criminal –" Mouri began, his eyes wide in shock,

"– is still inside the mansion!" Heiji completed, _'Oh no! Nagato-han is alone in his room, along with Ran-san!_ '

Conan underwent a similar panic, ' _Ran!'_

"Oh no!"

Conan quickly took off running towards the house, Heiji just a step behind. For a small body and even smaller legs, Conan miraculously kept pace with Heiji, his stamina definitely greater than normal seven year olds. It took slightly longer for Mouri and Megure-keibu to catch on, but they followed immediately.

"The door's locked! Damn it!" Heiji grunted as he tried the handles. He began banging the door then, "Hey! Is anyone inside? Open the door!"

 _'Ran!'_ Conan was growing more worried at the silence _, 'I'll use my power-enhancing shoes to kick it open!'_

Before Conan or Heiji could do anything else, the door opened to reveal a very irritated Nagato Nobuko-san.

"Are you _trying_ to bring my house down?" Nobuko asked them, a displeased frown playing upon her lips.

Peeking inside the room, Heiji saw Ran sitting by Nagato-san's bedside. Mouri and Inspector Megure arrived then, relieved that nothing had happened to anyone.

"Is there another problem?" Ran asked worriedly,

"Who knows what they want now!" Nobuko narrowed her eyes at the sudden arrivals.

Conan trotted over to Ran while Heiji asked Nobuko in surprise, "How long have you been here?"

"I rushed down here when I heard Yasue scream,"

"Really?" Conan piped up curiously,

"Yes!" Ran agreed, "She came into the room at the same time I did."

"And where were you before that?" Megure questioned her,

"In my room. I was in a slightly bad mood, so I was drinking," at the sceptical looks she received, she continued, "I was griping about things on the phone with my friend. I was drunk, though, so I can't remember who it was,"

Heiji sighed in disappointment, _'So basically, she's got no alibi,'_

"Anyway, is it true that it was Hideomi who killed Mitsuaki?" Nobuko asked the Inspector.

"Yes, well…apparently,"

' _Huh?_ ' Heiji frowned, ' _If she was in her room when we got Mitsuaki-han's phone and heard his scream how did she know it was Hideomi?_ ' He glanced at Ran, ' _Did she tell her? Or…'_

"Well, it's not surprising," Nobuko commented, surprising everyone, "It had to happen sometime,"

"Eh?" Megure was baffled, a sentiment Heiji and Conan shared, "What do you mean?"

"They used to always get into an argument over something or the other," Nobuko elaborated, "It's a real pity, because they used to be such good friends! Everything changed after that incident…"

"Incident?"

Nobuko obliged and explained. Apparently, the 'incident' had been the fire where Hideomi had gotten his burn scars from. Sakura Holiday inn had been swept up in flames, many years ago, when Hideomi and Mitsuaki had been walking home from school. It had been among those raging flames that Hideomi had jumped in to save a little girl – Hyuuga Miyuki.

' _Well,'_ Heiji pondered, _'at least this explains those 'bonds of flame' that Miyuki-han was talking about_ ,'

"No woman ever went near Hideomi after he got those scars," Nobuko continued, "and this woman – Hyuuga Miyuki! – she made passes at him, convinced him to introduce her as father's secretary, and now marriage!"

"That's enough, Nobuko,"

Looks like Dousan-san had woken up from his sleep.

After chastising her lightly, Dousan-san answered a couple of Megure's questions, assuring the Inspector that he was not left alone at any time and that Miyuki had been at his side till Ran came up to take her place. Mouri and Dousan-san also agreed to put off the search for his first love, and the whole group left the room, allowing the old man his rest. Ran and Nobuko stayed back with him.

The moment they left the room, Conan grabbed Heiji's hand and pulled him aside, "Hey, hurry up and tell me! The real reason why you called me here! I'm pretty sure it's not to find some long lost love of Nagato-san's!"

"Congrats! Yer pretty sharp, Kudo," Heiji grinned down at him.

Conan let out a low growl, sounding more like an angry wolf hound than he had any right to be. Heiji gave a chuckle before bending down,

"It's actually because the chairman said he's been hearing some strange sound at night."

"A strange sound?" Conan furrowed his brows in thought,

"Aa, the sound of someone running in the corridor quietly at night and the sound of objects colliding over and over again near the balcony,"

Conan's eyes widened in comprehension, "That's why he was worried –"

"– and called my dad over to investigate," Heiji completed his sentence, "and I, of course, suggested we call Mouri-han too."

"So the search for that woman was merely a ruse," Conan said, "the main problem was the suspicious occurrences at night,"

"Aa, my dad suspected burglars, so he instigated security guards for the grounds. Now, though, we know…"

"…that it was an advanced planning for committing a murder," Conan finished, "and the killer is someone in this house."

"But isn't it strange?" Heiji asked, "We arranged policemen to guard the grounds. Inside the house are two brilliant detectives, one…" Heiji gave a glance at Mouri who was walking ahead with Megure-keibu, "…not so brilliant detective – but someone who's got a pretty fearsome reputation because of you – yet the murderer committed the crime! Certainly quite confident and daring of them…"

"Or," Conan suggested, "they couldn't change the plan."

Heiji gave a nod at that, "What puzzles me are the objects left around the victim."

Conan raised a brow, "You mean the knife, bandages and that woollen hat?"

"Yeah," Heiji frowned, "Never mind the weapon. The criminal didn't have much time to flee, so why did he bother to take off his bandages or hat?"

"True," Conan agreed, "and the fact that he made sure we saw his face at the balcony, as if he wanted to place the blame on Hideomi-san."

"Yeah," Heiji acquiesced, "Hey Kudo, don't ya find that' Nobuko woman suspicious? She could have been the one to do it; she'd left the party early on!"

"Don't be so quick to find a conclusion, we don't have any evidence yet!" Conan reminded him.

"Uh…you're right," Heiji sheepishly rubbed his head and straightened up from his crouch.

 _'Darn, I thought Kudo not speaking in that sugary tone of his would be nice, but his cold and formal voice – especially when he points out something I may have overlooked – makes me feel like I'm talking to my superior…'_

But when Heiji looked down to see Conan's thoughtful face, he smiled, ' _However, it is definitely better than that childish tone he uses around others. What **I** am seeing is not a façade, but the true Kudo Shinichi._ '

* * *

Ran had ventured out of Dousan-san's room to see a very rare sight – Hattori Heiji, the seventeen year old detective, was stooping down to be level with her surrogate brother, Edogawa Conan. They seemed to be conversing about something before Hattori-kun got up and smiled down at him.

 _'That's really strange_ ,' Ran thought with a smile, ' _the last two times, Hattori-kun seemed not to like Conan-kun much. Looks like they've grown real close after that last case in Tokyo.'_

She walked up to them, "Hey there! When did the two of you become such good friends?"

Hattori-kun gave a startled laugh, "Ah, it's just that…talking to this brat helps relieve some boredom. We're not very close at all!"

Seeing Hattori-kun muss up Conan-kun's hair while Conan-kun gave a displeased glance up at the older teen, Ran wondered _, 'Certainly looks like you're close. And relieve boredom? By talking to a seven year old? Well, Conan-kun **is** very smart for his age…'_

Ran smiled down at him before asking Hattori, "Do you think the killer is Hideomi-san?"

"Ah, he does seem to be the most suspicious at the moment," Hattori-kun replied,

"Well, then I'll wait for that style of yours," Ran said cheerfully.

"Style?" Hattori asked in a confused manner,

"Yes, will you fall asleep and solve the case like my dad does, this time?"

* * *

The moment Ran had alluded to his 'style' of solving cases, Heiji had a foreboding feeling. When she explained what she meant, Heiji had flared up with irritation. Refraining from doing anything suspicious – like bonking Kudo on his head, though that sounded very good to him right now, (perhaps Mouri-han found it stress-relieving) – Heiji gave her a convincing smile.

"Ah, the 'Sleeping Detective' style, you mean?"

Mouri, a few feet ahead, turned at that. He came over to see what his daughter was talking to them about.

"Nah," Heiji gave a dismissive wave, "that 'style' is way too old for me,"

Mouri huffed and pulled his daughter away when he heard that, "Come with me, Ran. No need to stay with these unmannered brats!"

Conan simply smiled sweetly at that.

The moment they were out of sight, Heiji rounded on Conan, an angry tick on his forehead, "Hmph! Just remembering how you 'borrowed' my body last time to solve the case makes me angry again!"

"Maa, maa, calm down!" Conan tried to placate him, grinning slightly.

"Gah, merely thinking about it is creepy," Heiji placed his head in his palm, "Me – be like that bushy-moustached man?"

"Don't be so down on yourself!" Conan said, a slight smirk upon his lips as he patted Heiji's knee in support.

' _You brat,'_ Heiji looked down at him with narrowed eyes, ' _you're not sorry at all, are you? You're enjoying this, you devil!'_

"Just for that," Heiji declared after a moment, resuming his walk towards the gathered police downstairs, "this time you have to let me try to solve the case on my own. That means no interferences and no sleep-inducing darts from you!"

"Oi! Oi!" Conan protested as he hurried to catch up to him, "What do you mean no interferences? I'll have you know, I can work alongside you pretty well!"

"Yeah?" Heiji eyebrow's rose, "Without putting me to sleep?"

"Of course!" Kudo sounded indignant, "I'll show you! A deduction duet! It will be perfect!"

Heiji chuckled, _'Ah, that does sound interesting. A **duet** , though? Odd choice of word. Does he play an instrument?'_

When they reached Megure, he told them that they planned to begin their search now and that his help would be appreciated. On the other hand,

"Conan-kun, you stay inside with Ran-kun, okay?" Megure smiled at the shrunken teen.

One glance at Kudo confirmed Heiji's suspicions. He had no plans of staying inside quietly.

As Heiji began his own search, he thought back to the words he'd told Kudo earlier.

 _'…this time you have to let me **try** to solve the case on my own…'_

' _Try?_ ' Heiji scoffed, ' _I **will** solve the case, there's no trying to be done. Yet…is it that I've lost my confidence?'_

Even as he thought that, the answer came to him, ' _No, it's not that I've lost my confidence, it's just that Kudo's successes are intimidating me slightly. He seems almost…perfect._ '

Immediately, Heiji chastised himself for thinking those thoughts, ' _He's stuck like a kid for going after two shady men in black. His life's been turned upside down. His circumstances are everything but perfect!_ '

But a small voice whispered then, traitorously, ' _But, even then he's managing fabulously, isn't he? And upstaging you when it comes to solving crimes too!'_

Cursing himself for thinking in such a manner, Heiji pushed away those thoughts and continued his search.

* * *

For the next two days, the police combed everywhere in the Nagato mansion. But still, they found nothing. Hideomi-san was as elusive as ever. At the end of the second day, the search seemed, yet again, to be fruitless.

Tensions were high and someone was bound to snap soon. It just happened to be Nobuko. An argument between her and Miyuki took a turn for the worse – some rather sensitive topics had been touched, as well as Nobuko's marital status, or lack thereof – and Nobuko dealt her with a harsh slap.

Miyuki fell to the ground, her precious fountain pen flying from her hands and landed in the garden pond.

 _'There goes her father's memento again_ ,' Heiji sighed, ' _Can't she put it somewhere safer?'_

"My pen!" Miyuki cried out, seemingly ready to jump in to get it out.

Ran quickly held her back as the butler protested, "Hyuuga-san, the water is quite deep, you can't go in!"

"But that's the last thing I've got of my parents! I can't lose it!"

"Please wait, Hyuuga-san," Megure attempted to compromise, "We'll drain the pond for you,"

As Megure gave the order, Heiji sighed. Having made no progress in the case was frustrating for him and wasting time to retrieve a pen seemed pointless.

"The water is filthy," Mouri commented from where he was squatting down next to the pond, Conan right beside him as he tried to peer into it.

The height of the wall surrounding the artificial pond came to Conan's chin, making him stand on his toes. Heiji moved to stand beside him, watching as the water swirled and got sucked out of the drain, slowly emptying the pond.

An old, rotting branch came into view at first, then the tip of someone's shoes. Heiji swallowed dryly, exchanging a look with Conan; if that was what they thought it to be…

And it was. As the last of the water drained away, the cold and dead corpse of Nagato Hideomi came into view.

* * *

"Why? Why did things have to end this way, Hideomi Onii-sama?" His sister, Yasue-san cried out in despair.

Heiji agreed with her words. His death seemed almost…strange. The forensics had found the time of his death to be at least one and half to two days ago.

"Mitsuaki-san died at 10:00 pm on the day before yesterday," Megure-keibu stated, "That is 44 hours ago. If Hideomi-san committed suicide before the police arrived, everything would add up."

"But the cause of death was not drowning," the forensic expert denied.

Heiji looked at him in surprise.

"I can't be sure without an autopsy," the doctor continued, "but it seems he went into the pond after being poisoned."

' _Poison?_ ' Heiji narrowed his eyes, ' _That's unexpected._ '

"The body stayed submerged in the water because of the stones placed inside his clothes," the doctor pointed at the rocks that had been removed from the clothes.

"So, do you mean to say that he swallowed poison, grabbed the stones and then sank himself into the pond?" Megure said, startled.

The doctor simply shrugged.

"Megure-keibu!" Takagi-keiji came running towards them, "The forensic results are in."

As everyone turned expectedly towards him, Takagi read the report, "The knife matched the wound we found on Mitsuaki-san's body and the blood on the knife also belonged to Mitsuaki-san. Also, the hair found on the bandages and hat, belong to Hideomi-san."

Heiji blinked, ' _So does that mean Hideomi-han was truly the culprit?'_

"Another thing," Takagi said, "we found a kite string, about a meter long, in Mitsuaki-san's pocket."

' _Kite string?'_ Heiji wondered, _'Why a piece of string? No, even if it is Hideomi-han who killed Mitsuaki-han, the case is not yet over. There are still many unsolved mysteries here,'_

"Was the wound on the back of his right hand also made by the knife?" Conan asked suddenly.

"No, it wasn't," Takagi-keiji shook his head.

"And what was the blood type of the saliva that should have been on the knife?" Heiji asked,

"Well, none was found," Detective Takagi said, "Perhaps the saliva was wiped off by the criminal,"

Heiji and Conan locked gazes at that, immediately understanding that the truth was more than what it seemed to be.

"Sir! There's a paper in Hideomi-san's pocket!" One of the officers called out.

Megure accepted it, "It's a suicide note!"

Heiji and Conan immediately materialised next to the portly Inspector, reading the contents of the letter –

 _My dearest Miyuki,_

 _I cannot marry you. With the sin that I have committed, only death can be my release._

 _Hideomi_

"Miyuki-san, it is addressed to you," Megure told her softly.

She came forward to see it, "Is this his handwriting?"

"Yes," Miyuki agreed, "it is. I'll bring a sample of his writing from his room for you to compare."

With that, Hyuuga Miyuki walked back to the mansion, her head bowed, and completely ignored Ran when she tried to give back her fountain pen to her.

 _'Well,_ ' Heiji reasoned, ' _that's expected. She's grieving for the death of her fiancé. Not even her father's memento could truly provide any relief to her now…'_

"Let her go," Heiji told Ran when she tried to follow her, "I'll give the pen back to her later,"

"Well," Heiji said as he brought the pen up to eye level to investigate it, "It certainly is an old, beat up fountain pen."

"Ran! What are you doing?" Mouri asked as he came towards them. Looking at how Conan and Heiji were bent over the pen, he scoffed, "What are you kids investigating so meticulously? That suicide note has already denounced that Hideomi-san was the murderer."

Heiji and Conan scowled at him as he and Ran walked away.

"It's odd," Conan spoke up suddenly.

"Yeah," Heiji nodded, "this case is really odd."

"Murdering your own brother-in-law, then drinking poison…Not yet dead, putting stones in your pockets and then sinking your body in the pond so that no one finds you…Hideomi-san's actions are hard to understand," Conan voiced, "And now, there's that ambiguous suicide letter,"

"Exactly!" Heiji articulated, "It said, 'the sin that I have committed'…that would mean he wrote the letter _after_ he killed Mitsuaki-han! There's no way he'd have time to leisurely write a note when everyone was looking for him!"

"That means, someone made him write it or forged his handwriting," Conan reasoned, "Anyway, there's no doubt that someone poisoned him and then sunk him in the pond with the note."

"But, the only time anyone went near the pond was when we were looking for Hideomi-san," Heiji objected.

"Wait," Conan placed his chin between his forefinger and thumb, thinking out loud, "that means that Hideomi-san was killed _before_ Mitsuaki-san was murdered."

"Wasn't Hideomi-han the one who killed Mitsuaki-han in the first place?" Heiji sighed, burying his hands deep into his pockets, tired of the confusing mess before him, "Obviously we're still missing a lot of information. We need to collect more."

Conan, in a similar state, agreed, "I'll go ask the household staff some questions."

"And I'll question the guards once more."

As they parted ways, Heiji was reminded once again of how similarly they thought, _'What was I even thinking two days ago? Kudo's in the same boat as me. We're equally confused by this case. It's not like he has this whole thing solved while I'm blundering about…'_

Heiji smiled, ' _Besides, didn't he say something about a deduction duet? With how similar our thought processes are, it might be possible. I'm…looking forward to it.'_

With how far ahead he was of his peers, and many of the officers employed in the police department, Heiji had always preferred working alone. Be it Otaki-han, or any other detective, he would never share his thoughts with them until he'd solved the case. They were too slow to keep up with him.

But with Kudo, it was different. They were always on the same page, thinking the same thing. Completing each other's sentences, as they thought aloud regarding the case, had never seemed more natural.

Heiji had truly begun to think, that if it was with Kudo, he might give up his policy of working alone. Because for the first time, working together, with someone else, actually sounded…appealing.

* * *

 **AN: I know, I know, the cases take a lot of time. And it's quite repeated except for the parts with Heiji's input and a litlle more talk between Shinichi and Heiji, but I do hope you are liking it. Since most of Heiji's and Shinichi's bonding takes place between and during casework, I will write them, but I will try to shorten the boring and repetitive parts.  
**

 **Also, for all those who have been asking - YES, I will write my own chapters consisting of pure Heiji-Shinichi bonding. Phone calls, visits, just plain talking. Possibly a case or two. Nothing that will change the major plot of the original DC show, of course. But Heiji will be more involved in the investigation against the BO.**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **.**

 **To winx club - Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you liked the chapter! I must also thank you for prompting me to write those parts that you requested, they added more flavour to the story :) Hope this chapter lives up to your expectations!**

 **To Rockster - Thanks for reviewing! And as always, seeing your review just makes my day :) And yes, now starts the part where Heiji's tendency to slip up on Kudo's name shows up :) Most do end the same way: Heiji getting kicked on his shin (Ouch!) for messing up :P Yup, I wanted Heiji to think of the Secret Police, coz that's what Conan does too, when he realises Amuro's nickname was Zero. Of course, Heiji doesn't know that the PSB are already on the case (and the FBI and CIA, but Conan will tell him about it when the time comes!) I can't wait to to write his meeting with Jodie-sensei :P**

 **Thanks for pointing out the error, I corrected it :)**

 **Yes, I'll need the luck for exams - they're back to back! Not one study leave! :(**

 **Also, about Kazuha: even I felt it rather odd. So, I've tried to write up a possible theory for it. An interlude kinda thing, barely 1000 words long. Her ignorance on the Kudo's could be due to the fact that the couple are currently abroad, and Kudo Shinichi is still a minor so there aren't that many articles with his pictures. And if any, they're all in the 'Tokyo Times'. I'll be posting it sometime before the Naniwa serial murder case... so tell me if it is suitable when I do. Long time before that though...I haven't even finished this case yet!**

 **Gosh! It looks like you've really played all those games! And I agree, the Twilight Island part was genius! I've no idea about Ace Attorney though, so I can't really give my opinion on it :/ About the OSTs, you will notice that it's the same for the movies. They have a couple of new songs in the first few movies, but then it's mostly repeated - especially the Kid and Conan showdown theme. They have a couple of them; and I'll agree that they're all pretty good; but it is repetitive. It does get your adrenaline pumping though, so I don't complain :P**

 **Yup! Bourbon's reaction was superb! And the part where Conan and Amuro face off inside Poirot: "You liar." "Look who's talking." And then they share a smile. A SMILE! I was like, this is so GREAT! It was like the final acknowledgement of their respect towards each other! Ah, looks like my reply is rather long too...:P**

 **Thanks for reviewing! Hope you liked this cahpter too! :)**

 **To Wolf white - Thanks for reviewing! Glad you're enjoying my story! I will try to update faster, and keep them consistent, but sometimes it may just not be possible. I'm never one to abandon my stories though, that you can count on :)**

 **.**

 **All of you silent readers out there - I hope you are liking this story. If you are (and if not) do please let me know by reviewing! It does not take much time and highly encourages me to write faster! But, thank you all the same :)**

 **So...**

 **REVIEW!**


	9. A Deduction Duet

**AN: Yay! Exams are over...for now. I never know when the next round will start, so my chapters will not quite so frequent as they used to be, but I will make sure to find time!  
**

 **I've posted a couple of new stories** "Kindly Cruel" and "Consequences Of Our Actions" **. Please do read and let me know how you liked it!**

 _Okay readers, quick question I really, really need an answer to: What did you think of the Edogawa Conan Kidnapping Case (Episode 43)? Do go into detail while explaining.  
_

 _Please, it is important to know your views on it for my fanfic. Help out a fellow author, will you?_

 **Here you go, the third part of the case!**

 **Let me know how you like it!**

 **Enjoy~**

 **.**

"Dialogues"

' _Thoughts'_

* * *

Chapter 9: A Deduction Duet

* * *

The guards did not have much to tell Heiji in the end, apart from what they'd already told the police.

"I'm sure of it! All three days we've been guarding here, not a single person has entered or left the premises. Ah! Wait a moment!"

Heiji perked up, wondering what the security guard remembered.

"On the night of the party, one person did come out – Mitsuaki-san!"

"Mitsuaki-han? When?"

"At around 9:30 pm. He asked us if we'd seen Hideomi-san, but we hadn't so he went back and was wandering around the pond. It was dark though, so I wasn't sure what he was doing…"

Heiji let his feet lead him towards the balcony where Mitsuaki had fallen from. Acting on a whim, he moved closer and right under the balcony of Mitsuaki and Yasue's room.

' _Right above me, from the balcony, someone wearing bandages over his face had hooked a rope and climbed down,_ ' Heiji tried to recreate the scene _, 'so, if I was the murderer, where would I have escaped?'_

Taking a glance upwards, Heiji froze, ' _Is that…? A dent?_ '

What could have made it was a mystery. It was an odd mark for sure though. The balcony next to it, upon checking, had many similar indentions upon it. But, the thing that could have made such a mark on the underside of the window's gallery was elusive to Heiji.

 _'Can't really make anything of it,_ ' Heiji mused, ' _let's get a second opinion then,'_

Walking into the mansion, Heiji made a beeline towards the kitchen, where Kudo was talking to the chefs and maids.

"Oh, yes, speaking of odd, a bed sheet's been missing since the last three days!" Heiji heard a maid say as he opened the door.

"Oi, Kudo," Heiji beckoned him, "check this out,"

Conan blinked, but quickly trotted after him, curious.

"What is it?"

"Something really odd I saw on the underside of the balcony of Mitsuaki and Yasue-han's room."

"The balcony Mitsuaki-san was thrown from?"

"Aa."

Kudo looked equally puzzled at what could have made those marks and Heiji then called his attention to the other balcony.

"There are a lot more here!" Conan pointed out, "Whose room is that?"

"Nobuko-han's."

"Something smells fishy…Okay! Let's go check it out!" came the prompt suggestion.

"Huh?" Heiji looked wide-eyed as the shrunken teen ran back towards the mansion purposefully.

Quickly catching up, Heiji asked him, "So? What did you learn from the staff?"

"An increased food intake, consumption of desserts that used to be left untouched and a missing blanket," Kudo rattled off clinically, "Also, it seems that Yasue-san changed his bandages every three days. The last time she'd done it was two days ago."

Heiji frowned, "Taking all tha' into account, it's quite possible tha' it was an imposter who was taking Hideomi's place."

Conan gave a nod of agreement as they stopped in front of Nobuko's room. When after repeated knocks, there was no answer; Heiji concluded that she mustn't be in.

"Yeah, she might be with Ran and the others, staying close together after the murder," Conan agreed, reaching up on his toes to twist the handle and open the door, "safety in numbers and all that."

"Then what are ya doing?" Heiji hissed in alarm, "She's not in her room!"

"Exactly! Perfect time to check it out!"

 _'Oi! He's not serious, is he? That's no better than a snoop!'_

Seeing Conan enter the room quite brazenly, looking over his shoulder at Heiji as if inquiring whether he was joining him or not, Heiji realised that, yes, he was serious.

Heiji sighed and moved in, closing the door behind him as Conan got onto all fours and began crawling all over the floor, checking out under the bed and couches. He wandered all around the room, patting pillows, examining the dresser, moving the curtains.

"Hey, Kudo, are you sure this a good idea?" Heiji voiced doubtfully from his position near the door, "This isn't any different from a burglar."

"It's fine! It's fine!" Kudo dismissed, continuing his search.

 _'Geez, this guy really doesn't care, does he?_ ' Heiji thought as he watched him _, 'I've never conducted such an investigation before, snooping around without the owner or police present. What does he mean by 'It's fine!'? Anyway… Better do it before Nobuko-han returns back for something, though,_ '

The phone rang loudly just then, startling Heiji.

"P-Phone!" Heiji stuttered, feeling like a complete amateur, a first timer thief committing a robbery, "What should we do?"

 _'Well, it's not like I'm put into such situations usually!'_ Heiji fumed at his own loss of composure.

But Heiji needn't have worried, because Kudo was already moving, bow-tie in hand and fiddling with the little dials on it before picking up the receiver and speaking into it in a perfect rendition of Nagato Nobuko's voice.

"Hello?"

Heiji let out a sigh and decided to let Kudo handle that. Instead, he moved further into the room, cataloguing Nobuko's possessions, trying to discern if anything in here could actually help with the case.

Meanwhile, Kudo was playing the bored, haughty and dismissive Nobuko's role with perfection, leading on a convincing conversation with the caller.

"Yes. What is it?"

Heiji snorted inwardly at the indifferent words, ' _Very like your own, true personality, eh Kudo?'_

"Two days ago?"

Eyes narrowing at those words, Heiji immediately dropped down to Conan's level, pressing his ear against the receiver.

"At what time exactly?" Kudo asked sharply,

"Did you forget?" Nobuko's friend asked, "You called me just before ten and kept calling over and over again for half an hour."

Heiji relaxed slightly at those words, ' _If Nobuko-han was truly on the phone then, for nearly the whole time it took for the crime to take place, then she is innocent.'_

Exchanging a glance with Conan, Heiji nodded to confirm that they'd both reached the same conclusion and Conan quickly lead the talk to an end.

"At ten o' clock two days ago," Heiji mused, "exactly when the crime occurred."

"Yeah," Kudo agreed, "at least we know it's not Nobuko-san who appeared at the balcony,"

"Then we're back to the original suspect – Hideomi."

"At any rate, let's go and search Hideomi-san's room," Kudo said, looking up at Heiji, a glint in his eye.

' _Geez, again?'_ Heiji sighed _, 'Oh well, best roll with the punches then,'_

* * *

"There are books everywhere!" Hattori exclaimed, dislodging a few from the desk and sending them to the floor in a flurry of pages, "He was a novelist, after all, eh?"

 _'Look at you, you act just like a burglar too,'_ Conan dead-panned at his western counterpart's actions, _'And who was it that was telling me just a few scarce minutes ago about how unethical this was?'_

"Oh! It's an answering machine!" Hattori said suddenly, "And there a few messages too!"

"Really?" Conan asked eagerly, "Let's listen, then."

Hattori obliged and pressed the blinking red button, allowing the messages to rewind and play.

 _Hello, this is Yamada from Literature Times. Let's discuss your latest manuscript tomorrow at the usual place at one o' clock. Message received: October 31st, 1:28 pm._

"That's the day before the incident," Hattori remarked, to which Conan nodded.

 _This is Yamada. I'm at the usual café. Message received: November 1st, 3:04 pm._

"The day of the incident," Conan said, "and didn't we see him at approximately 3:00 pm in Dousan-san's room with Mitsuaki-san at around that time?"

"Aa," Heiji agreed.

 _This is Yamada. I've been waiting for six hours. It seems you won't be coming, so I'll be going home now. Message received: November 1st, 9:10 pm._

Immediately afterwards, Heiji rounded on Conan, "Oi! Six hours…! And he's not even heard the message from the day before! That must mean that Hideomi-san –" '– _was already dead…?'_

Conan, catching up to Heiji's line of thought gave a disbelieving chuckle, sounding both incredulous and nervous at the same time, "Impossible! Because, his estimated time of death was –"

They froze, Conan's words triggering an odd thought in their minds.

 _'… **estimated** time of death…'_

They locked gazes, realisation spreading through them and exchanged triumphant grins. They knew the answer; they knew the identity of the culprit. And they revelled in the fact that the _both_ of them had reached the same conclusion and they _knew_ it…even without saying it aloud.

"There is only that way then that it could have happened," Heiji smirked, knowing that Kudo knew what he was talking about.

"Aa," Conan agreed with a smirk of his own, "and if that is so, then there is only one person who could have done it,"

* * *

Re-searching Mitsuaki and Yasue's room took them a while, but in the end they found it – the evidence to support their theory as to how the crime had been carried out.

"Got it!" Heiji exclaimed, extracting something from the bottom most shelves of the cupboard, "A dirty sheet, and there's a swimming cap here too."

"I've found the other thing we're looking for,"

At Conan's words, Heiji glanced up from his perusal of the soiled sheets and saw him straining his neck to look upwards. There, shadowed against the near-translucent decorative glass that surrounded the light bulb hanging in the centre of the ceiling, was a clear outline of a syringe.

"Great," Heiji grinned, "that's everything accounted for,"

"It is," Conan replied before turning to look at him, "So, how do you want to do this?"

"Do what?" Heiji raised an eyebrow,

Conan scowled, "This! The deduction? Unless you want me to dart you…?"

"Hell no!" Heiji glared at him, "Besides, weren't ya the one who said somethin' about a deduction duet?"

"Yeah, but I don't normally work with others, you know. It's strange…"

"As it is fer me," Heiji told him, "I usually take the stage fer myself. No one can keep up with me anyways,"

Conan shrugged, "Same here. Which is why, I am asking. How do you want to do this?"

Heiji paused. Of course things weren't going to fit together seamlessly, this was the first time they were going to present their deductions together. For some, it might be an odd thing to debate upon, but for them it was a natural supposition.

Both Hattori Heiji and Kudo Shinichi had revelled in the attention that was bestowed upon them when they showed off their deductions. It was but obvious, being a detective meant being the recipient of all kinds of stares – judging ones from the police, incredulous gazes from the witnesses and over-confident looks from the culprits who didn't believe that a teenager could get them caught.

Edogawa Conan shied away from attention, but the 'Sleeping Kogoro' exulted in being under the lime-light. _Sharing_ that lime-light was a foreign concept to the both of them.

When Kudo had first suggested a deduction duet, Heiji had not known what to think, wondering if such an arrangement would even work out. Heiji had been friendly and open towards his rival since after knowing his secret, but the Eastern Detective had remained a bit distant in his mannerisms and interactions with Heiji.

 _'That's a bit expected,'_ Heiji acquiesced, ' _considering that I all but blackmailed him into telling me the truth, but…'_

…but, that now hindered their investigation. Finally, Conan sighed.

"Look, I don't know how you do it, but I adhere by the policy that actions speak louder than words," Conan glanced at him before elaborating, "I usually acted out the method of the crime to add credibility, or let the officers do it when I'm being 'Sleeping Kogoro'."

"So do I, actually," Heiji said, "I had done so for that first case…you know… that time where you turned up suddenly…"

"Yeah," Conan grimaced in remembrance for some reason, "okay, so. Um, so, you're playing Mitsuaki's part then?"

 _'Co-operation, Heiji, co-operation_ ,' Heiji thought to himself, ' _Damn, this is hard. Having to sort out such details. I don't need ta usually think for this stuff. I know what I've got ta do, and that's enough. Wait…'_

"Why bother?" Heiji asked.

"Huh?"

"Why bother?" Heiji repeated, looking at Kudo, "We both know the method, motive and murderer. Let's just do it how we usually do."

"Usually?" Conan said before brightening up, "Okay, that works. I'll start with Occhan's help, and then you do your part. Think you'll be able to keep up?"

"That should be my line," Heiji grinned at his teasing words.

Because in the end, there was no need for planning. Why should they, when they already knew how and what the other was doing? There was no need to go through each and every motion, strategize each and every part – this was not dissimilar from their usual deductions, having but a small difference. In place of one, there were two of them.

Yet, despite that, they needn't change. There was no need to compromise. They would do what they always did, trusting the other to keep up, because they were the only ones who _could._ Because, even if they hadn't know each other long, they knew the other well enough to know that.

* * *

· Rope

· Hook

· Metal weight

· Bandages

· Plastic disposable syringe

"Oi, Kudo," Heiji paused in his writing – Miyuki-san's pen had been of no use as its tip was bent out of shape – with a pen he'd procured from one of the staff, "think we need a needle?"

"Nah," Conan shook his head, "the syringe will do the work. Plus, we're going to be using diluted red paint, not blood. So, there's no need for a needle,"

"Hmm, 'kay then,"

· Red paint, water based colour

· Swimming cap

· Knife

· Woollen hat

"I think that's all of it," Conan said, "Now let's go ask someone to buy it –"

The door to the library opened just then, admitting Ran and Miyuki-san inside.

"Oh, Hattori-kun! So this is where you were!" Ran said, "Mou, why don't you give Miyuki-san's fountain pen back to her?"

' _Oops!'_ Heiji chuckled sheepishly and got up from his chair, "Sorry, sorry…I completely forgot!"

He handed the pen over to Miyuki then, while Ran bent down to take hold of Conan's hand.

"Come, we're going home now, Conan-kun," Ran told him, "The sun went down, already,"

 _'Going home?_ ' Heiji thought in surprise, before looking at Miyuki-san "Huh? Already? What time is it now?"

She glanced at her wrist in reflex before abruptly aborting the movement. Turning towards a clock placed on one of the study tables, she glanced at the time,

"It's 6:50 pm," Miyuki said softly.

"Good!" Heiji grinned, "The stores are still open then. Ran-nee-chan, sorry to bother you, but can you please buy these things for me?"

Saying so, Heiji handed her the list.

"Huh? Okay…"

"Also," Heiji turned to Miyuki, "do you know who is using the room above Nobuko-han's?"

"Umm, that would be me," Miyuki blinked at the odd question.

"Ah, in that case, could you ask everyone to come up to that room in an hour from now?"

Then, hooking an arm around Conan, Heiji bodily lifted him up in some kind of pseudo-hug, "And I'm borrowing this kid till then too,"

"Oh, wait!" Ran called out as the both of them left the room.

Looking over Heiji's shoulder, Conan smiled at Ran before saying, "Be sure to call Kogoro Oji-san too!"

Heiji jogged down the corridor then, before Ran or Miyuki could say anything else. Conan gave a sharp tug on Heiji's ear – the closest appendage accessible to him at the moment – as soon as they were out of sight.

Irritated at having been carried like a kid, Conan gave Heiji a glare, "Put me down!"

"Nah," Heiji replied, "this is faster,"

Conan grumbled at that but did not complain further, so Heiji took it as an assent that he was given permission to pick him up in such a manner. That made him smile; being carried like a kid when he was not one must have quite annoying for Kudo, as well as quite a blow to his pride.

That Heiji was being allowed to do so must have meant that Kudo understood too – he understood that to Heiji, they were equals. Despite being vertically challenged, Heiji respected Kudo's brilliant mind and his physically younger body did nothing to hamper that admiration.

"By the way," Conan asked suddenly, "what's with the Ran- _nee-chan_? Since when are _you_ calling her Nee-chan?"

Heiji's steps faltered for barely a moment, "It feels odd, calling her Ran when you are calling her Nee-chan…disrespectful. She's _yer_ gal; it would be impolite call her by her name when ya don't… And it just slipped out automatically, ya know…"

Heiji trailed off, looking at Kudo to see what he thought of this. The grateful smile that graced the other detective's face told him how much he appreciated Heiji's thoughtful actions, unconscious though they were.

* * *

The first thing both detectives had done was to acquire the phone number of the telephone in Miyuki-san's room. A quick call from that phone to Heiji's mobile ensured that.

Half an hour later, when Ran had come up to them with all the required items, they had begun to prepare their setup.

Tying the metal weight to one end of the long rope, Heiji knotted the other end with the hook. Meanwhile, Conan mixed a bit of water in the red paint to dilute it and filled the syringe with it.

When Mouri-tantei arrived ten minutes before the others were due, wondering why he was called up here, he was met with a sleeping dart to his neck.

"That actually seems quite unkind, ya know," Heiji remarked, "I certainly didn't like it when ya put _me_ to sleep with tha' dart,"

"I know," Conan agreed with a hint of remorse before it cleared away, replacing it with a perfect indifferent mask.

And Heiji knew it was a mask, now that he'd actually gotten to know a bit of the real Kudo Shinichi.

"I try to give him clues or hints at first," Conan continued, "but if he still doesn't get it, I just dart him…or sometimes when the situation is urgent, I simply dart him immediately. I didn't really like it at first either, but is necessary, you know,"

"Necessary?"

"Ah, I'll tell you later…"

"I'll hold you to that,"

They went back to their work then. As Heiji and Conan arranged Mouri in his usual 'Sleeping Kogoro' pose on an armchair, something struck them,

"Wait, Kudo…"

"Yeah, I get it,"

"The old man's ready, everything we need is set and our reasoning is perfect. But we forgot one very important thing."

"Yeah," Conan sighed in exasperation and disappointment,

"Evidence!" Heiji thumped his forehead with his palm, "We don't have any evidence,"

"It's true; we were a bit…silly. We completely forgot about that,"

Heiji crouched down to Kudo's level then, "Oi, what time is it now?"

"It's 7:40 pm," Conan cursed, looking at his watch, "everyone will be here in ten minutes!"

"Hmph! Why didn't ya realize this before?" Heiji scowled at Kudo, "Aren't you the Great Detective of the East?"

"You moron, why didn't you realize it?" Kudo retorted, "Aren't you the Great Detective of the West –"

They froze then, something clicking in their mind as the light glinted off Conan's wrist-watch.

 _...She glanced at her wrist in reflex before abruptly aborting the movement…_

 _… Miyuki-san's pen had been of no use as its tip was bent out of shape…_

"Wait a moment," Conan breathed out in surprise,

"Why did that person…" Heiji let out a gasp then,

"I get it!" the both of them exclaimed together.

Sharing a quick smile, Heiji picked up his supplies, "Yosh! It's alright now. We'll start everything as planned in ten minutes,"

Heiji was just about to leave the room when Kudo called out to him,

"Hey Hattori," he paused, an odd emotion clouding his words,

Heiji turned back to see Kudo perched atop a table, peering inside a portable geyser, "What's the matter?"

"Hattori," Kudo repeated, "Have you ever killed a person before?"

"Huh?" Heiji's eyes widened, _'Killed someone? The hell is Kudo talking about?'_

"Never mind," Conan said abruptly, "and get another container – plastic if possible,"

"Wait, Kudo. What were you saying then? Have I ever killed someone? Why did you ask that?" Heiji demanded.

"Leave it, Hattori,"

"Kudo –!"

"Later, please. Not now, later…"

Heiji swallowed, "I'm definitely holding you to _that_ ,"

"Okay," Kudo whispered before repeating, "the container please,"

"Huh? Why though?" Heiji moved closer to see what was in the geyser, "G-Gasoline?!"

' _Damn! Is that person contemplating –'_ "Suicide?!" Heiji yelped, startling himself.

"Aa" Kudo agreed, "Now go get that container. We must empty this immediately."

* * *

Ten minutes later, Heiji had readied himself in Nobuko's room, tying the bandages around his face so that everything but an eye was covered. Then, covering his hair with the swimming cap, he put on the woollen hat. A glance at the mirror confirmed it – he looked just like the deceased Hideomi had.

Using the plastic syringe, he carefully squirted some red paint on the bandages and the knife blade. After that, he checked to make sure that the rope with the hook and metal weight were in place and firmly tied.

Heiji waited for a couple of minutes to pass and then, as planned, he dialled the number to Miyuki-san's room.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the room above, Megure-keibu, Ran, Miyuki-san, Nobuko-san, Yasue-san and the butler had been greeted by the 'Sleeping Kogoro'.

As Inspector Megure tried to question Mouri about the reason for the gathering, the telephone rang.

"P-Phone!" Megure sputtered incomprehensively,

"Now Inspector," Conan smirked in anticipation, "Please answer the phone and the tragic night when Mitsuaki-san was impaled on the fence will play out once more…"

Gulping at the detective's ominous words, Megure complied, "Hello,"

"Ah, it's me," Hattori replied from the other end.

"Oh, it's just you, Hattori-kun," Megure sighed in relief,

"AAH! What are you doing?"

Freaked out by Hattori's realistic and painful scream, Megure immediately followed Heiji's instructions when he repeated almost the same words Mitsuaki-san had said before his death, and went out onto the balcony. Looking down below, a face covered with bandages with a knife its mouth glared up at him.

"What's going on?" the butler asked Megure as he returned into the room.

"I don't know, but whatever's the case, I'm going down to save him,"

"Please wait," Conan called out in Mouri's voice,

"Huh?"

"This is how the culprit made everyone leave the room, so that they could hide that dreadful truth,"

There was clang of metal then and everyone could see a hook attached to a rope that caught itself along the railing. Climbing up the rope and onto the balcony was the man with bandages.

The bandages came off then, to reveal none other than Hattori Heiji.

"Hattori-kun?!" Megure exclaimed in surprise.

* * *

"Causing an uproar over the phone and showing his face on the balcony…both were just an act performed by Mitsuaki-han to frame Hideomi-han," Heiji explained,

"That's impossible!" Megure said, "What about the blood the culprit had on the knife and his face? And the knife wounds on Mitsuaki-san's body?"

"The wounds were made by Mitsuaki-san himself," Conan spoke up, "as for the blood, he extracted a small amount with a needle and syringe to spray them on the bandages and hat. The hat and bandages belonged to Hideomi-san, of course,"

Heiji the pulled off the hat to reveal a swimming cap underneath, "He prevented any of his own hair from getting on the hat in this way. And we found a syringe and swimming cap in Mitsuaki-han's room."

"But why would he do such a thing?" Megure asked, "The one who died was Mitsuaki-san!"

"His motive was to kill Nagato Dousan," Mouri's voice called out.

"The chairman?"

"Yes, he had an accomplice to drug the chairman –"

"Accomplice?" Megure repeated in astonishment, "Oi, Mouri-kun –"

"Yes, an accomplice," Heiji overrode the Inspector, "while the accomplice lured everyone downstairs, Mitsuaki-han would kill Nagato-han then return back to the room below," he paused, "However, he was killed by his accomplice… by Hyuuga Miyuki-han!"

That declaration was met with shock from the others and resignation from the culprit herself.

"Mitsuaki-han must have been really surprised," Heiji continued, "to see her at the balcony when the chairman should have been alone… On top of that, she even shoved him off!"

"But, if that's the case," Megure contemplated, "then the knife should have fallen along with him, not at a distance away."

"He must have tossed the knife, bandages and hat outside first, hidden the swimming cap in his room, and then climbed upstairs," 'Sleeping Kogoro' explained.

"The long string we found in Mitsuaki-han's pockets – that was his weapon to kill the chairman, by strangulation," Heiji said.

"Of course, Miyuki-san's target was only Mitsuaki-san," Conan said in Mouri's voice.

"Ya wouldn't' think that the victim himself was also a criminal," Heiji added.

"Then what of the rope with the hook?" Megure inquired, "According to witnesses, it was swinging – as if the culprit just got away,"

"That part is easy," Heiji smirked.

Then, leading the Inspector to the balcony, Heiji showed the Inspector how holding the rope by the other end, he could adjust it till it caught on the balcony below. Letting go of the weight, it swung the rope, till it collided with the underside of the balcony – thus leaving a dent – and the rope began swinging due to momentum.

"There is a mark under the balcony of Mitsuaki-han's room and several similar marks under Nobuko-han's balcony. Miyuki-han must have been practising the technique before the night of the murder."

"Practising?" Megure echoed,

"Aa, the chairman's been hearing noises in the night," Heiji confided, "Thuds near his window and someone running down the hallway as well,"

"That was Miyuki-san," Conan explained in Mouri's gruff tone, "figuring out how long it would take to the spare key to Mitsuaki-san's room from the storage room. In other words, this was a pre-mediated murder planned by her."

"So, was she the one who killed Hideomi-san too?" Megure enquired,

"As I said earlier," Conan continued, "Mitsuaki-san was Miyuki-san's _only_ target. Hideomi-san wrote the note himself, before ingesting poison and committing suicide the day before."

"T-The day _before_?!"

"Yes, perhaps Miyuki-san discovered him dead in his room and then came up with this plan,"

"But, Mouri-kun, the estimated time of Hideomi-san's death –"

"You said it, keibu-han," Heiji grinned, " _estimated_ time. Hideomi-han was buried underground. The rate of decay is eight times _slower_ when not in contact with air."

At gaining Megure's attention, Heiji continued, "In all probability, Miyuki-han called Mitsuaki-han, wrapped Hideomi-han in a bed sheet and they quietly buried him near the pond in the morning, in one of the holes dug for planting trees."

"So," Megure said, "the one who sank the body in the pond was Mitsuaki-san, then?"

"Yes," Heiji agreed, "right before the crime while he was pretending to look for him,"

"But," the butler protested, "Hideomi-sama was there in the mansion on the day of the crime,"

"No, no," Heiji shook his head, "the person we saw was either Miyuki-han or Mitsuaki-han disguised as Hideomi-han. The proof is hidden in Hideomi-han's answering machine – that he was already dead the day before the crime."

"But why did the Mitsuaki-san go along with Miyuki-san's plan?" Megure asked,

The motive turned out to be money. The most common motive there was – money. Mitsuaki was greedy and wished to be the owner of the Nagato Company and decided to kill his father-in-law for it, and frame Hideomi at the same time.

"That's a lie!" Ran cried out in desperation, "Miyuki-san was saved by Hideomi-san long ago. Why would she frame such a person?"

 _'Nee-chan…'_ Heiji's eyes widened at her impassioned speech, ' _You can't help but look for the goodness in human hearts, can you? But love and hate are such complex emotions, it is impossible to deduce. Because sometimes…sometimes, one can both love **and** hate someone so passionately… and this is what happens,'_

"Where is the proof?" Ran further demanded,

"What is the time now, Miyuki-san?" Conan said instead of answering Ran,

"What are you talking about, Otou-san?" Ran asked as Miyuki-san cast her eyes about for a clock.

Unfortunately, Heiji and Conan had relocated all clocks present inside the room.

"Ara?" Mouri's voice called out, "What happened to your wrist watch?"

"Ah, I just happened to forget it today –"

"No, you didn't happen to _forget_ it. You can't wear it anymore because the wristband broke at that time. When you shoved Mitsuaki-san, he grabbed onto your watch. If he would have broken it, it would have left on the scene of crime,"

Miyuki began paling at Conan's accurate description of the events that occurred that day.

"In your panic, you used a certain something to stab his hand…it left a mark there too,"

"A certain something?" Megure repeated, "It can't be! Her fountain pen?!"

All eyes darted to the innocent looking pen tucked into her breast pocket.

"Yes," Conan said, "she pried of the cap with her mouth and stabbed him with the pen,"

"But, how did you figure out that much?" the Inspector asked them,

"I opened the cap when I tried to write something with it," Heiji told him, "but the tip was bent. The fire might have scorched the pen, but it couldn't have damaged the tip in such a manner,"

"But, why would Miyuki-san do such a thing?" Ran asked them, disbelief coating her words,

"It probably has something to do with the fire," Heiji said.

When Conan spoke up, putting forth their hypothesis that the fire had been lit by Hideomi and Mitsuaki, Miyuki did not deny it. Hideomi tried to atone for his sins by refusing to surgically heal his face and then committed suicide as final repentance.

'… _With the sin that I have committed, only death can be my release…'_

* * *

Miyuki broke down thereafter, confessing to the crime. She also told them that she truly did love Hideomi, and as such couldn't bear to leave him in the cold pond any longer and thus staged the fight with Nobuko in order to provide an excuse to empty the pond and retrieve his body.

Then, in a fast movement, she picked up the geyser and moved to a corner, lighting her lighter, "Don't come any closer! There's gasoline in this flask!"

"Hey, don't be so foolish!"

"Stop that, Miyuki-san!"

"Stay away, I'm serious!"

Crying about her love and simultaneous hatred for Hideomi, she wished to commit suicide and join him in the after-life.

"Don't!"

"No!"

"Stop!"

"It's useless," Heiji said loudly, "We've emptied it,"

"Why?" Miyuki-san sobbed, "Why? Hideomi's fire lit so easily, why won't mine?"

As she continued to wail, Heiji couldn't help but pity her. For the first time, he wondered if they truly should have emptied the vessel.

"Hey, Kudo," Heiji called out as Conan was about to walk away, "would it have been better if we'd just let her die right here?"

"Bar'ou," Kudo admonished him softly, "A detective who corners the culprit with their reasoning…and drives them to suicide in front of himself is no better than a murderer,"

Heiji blinked then sighed, "Ah, my ears are tingling with pain. Only you're perfect enough to say such a line,"

"There's no such thing as a perfect person in the world. Even I couldn't… Just one person… Even I..."

 _'…Hattori, have you ever killed a person before…?'_

The pain, the _regret_ , in Conan's voice was palpable.

Heiji sucked in a sharp breath, _'Kudo… could it be… could it be that… you failed to save a culprit from committing suicide before? And you still carry that guilt till now?'_

Thinking upon it, he realised, _'What you've said is true. If, despite knowing that she planned to commit suicide, I'd not done anything to stop her…I would have never been able to forgive myself,'_

Heiji gazed down at his counterpart with new eyes then. For the first time, Heiji could see how human – how _imperfect_ – Kudo was. He'd made a mistake once, one that cost a life. Unknowingly, his inaction had caused a death, and now he'd forever remember it – to make sure it never happened again.

Kudo was not perfect, but that flaw made him all the more likable to Heiji.

Up till now, Heiji could only call Kudo as an acquaintance of his, a rival. He'd been so far removed from his eastern counterpart's life, that they could be nothing else.

And while he may have slowly gotten to know him in the last two visits to Tokyo, there had only been a spark of friendship. Heiji had been labouring under the misconception of Kudo's greatness, and now this case had opened his eye.

For the first time, he'd seen Kudo Shinichi. He'd interacted with the person instead of persona.

Reciprocally, Kudo had come to know Heiji instead of the 'Detective of the West'.

For the first time, both of them felt that this one-time partnership and collaboration as detectives on a case could be repeated; because…it had been gratifying.

Despite the sad ending and the loss of life, Heiji and Shinichi had finally gotten to know each other better.

As Conan and Heiji walked out of the room side by side, there was a sense of companionship that felt pleasurable. As if they were two pieces of a jig-saw puzzle finally coming together.

Had Kazuha been here, she would have called it Fate. And, perhaps it really was…

* * *

 **AN: The end of another case, I hope everyone enjoyed it! And this case was more complicated to write down than the previous one, and the complexity will only be increasing hence forth. So all those who feel I'm not portraying it correctly, do be a dear and help out. Point out any inconsistancies you see, any errors you find. I'm only one person, I may miss out while editing my chpater.  
**

 _Okay readers, quick question I really, really need an answer to: What did you think of the Edogawa Conan Kidnapping Case (Episode 43)?_ _Do go into detail while explaining._

 _Please, it is important to know your views on it for my fanfic. Help out a fellow author, will you?_

 **.**

 **To winx club - Thanks for reviewing! It's always good to hear that you're enjoying the story. What more can any author ask for? :)**

 **To Rockster - Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you liked it! Conan and Heiji's interactions are always a pleasure to write about! And I agree, the inside jokes are hilarious, like when Mouri says in one case: "I don't really remember much of the case. Perhaps I was dreaming a bit." And Heiji's like, "Yeah, Occhan, you were." And then of course, Conan kicks him :P Their interactions are just so so amusing, and their friendship is so absolutely beautiful, I adored it in the manga and anime :)**

 **Yup, so that last chapter did have a bit of introspection and everything about Conan's actions have a different meaning to it now that Heiji knows the truth... You watch them on youtube? I never find good quality videos there, or all of them either. I usually watch anime on gogoanime , it has really good quality videos. And all the episodes are in one place too!**

 **From the Black Org, my favourite character is Vermouth, but I like Bourbon too. He is just as mysterious as Sharon! And that makes everything so much more exciting!**

 **As I've mentioned before, I prefer animes and mangas to games. So I've got literally no idea about them. The Kindaichi crossover intrigued me, but alas, I never got to play it :(  
**

 **Ace Attorney...I seriously have to check what this is really! With the way you gush about it, I'm more than curious now:) Have you seen Death Note? I suddenly got reminded of it this past week, and had the urge to watch it again...I can't help but be awed every time I see it. I've also been thinking about writing a Death Note/Detective Conan crossover since the past few weeks... Nothing concrete yet, it's only an idea, let's see where it goes :)**

 **Thanks again! Hope you enjoyed this chapter!  
**

 **And about Kindly Cruel - I'm happy that you liked it, even though, as you say, you're not a fan of 'bromance'. It means a lot to me :)** **As I said in the fic, it was just an idea. I'd no idea how it would turn out and how well it would be received, so I'm just really, really happy that you liked it! Or at least, the way I've described Shinichi's reasons for acting that way. :)  
**

* * *

 **Partners** By: Mayonaka no Sasayaki

Kudou Shinichi and Miyano Shiho. Edogawa Conan and Haibara Ai. Holmes and Adler. They are powerful by their own, unmatched when together. This is their story...Chapter 4: In which Shinichi helps his partner hide in plain sight.

 _A beautiful story regarding the relationship between Conan and Ai. Do take some time out to read it!_

* * *

 **A** **ll of you silent readers out there - I hope you are liking this story. If you are (and if not) do please let me know by reviewing! It does not take much time and highly encourages me to write faster! But, thank you all the same :)  
**

 **So...**

 **REVIEW!**


	10. Opportune Phone Calls

**AN: Okay, guys, this might be the last chapter of this fic I post this month. Exams ahoy! So, yeah, probably not many frequent updates, if any at all. But, I'll definitely be back in action after exams. This fic is FAR from over. Just going on a short break, is all.**

 **Also, a bit of original content here. Not manga or anime related at all - featuring a bit of Conan and Heiji's dedcutive skills :)**

 **Also, it's very very long, so it should be good enough till my next update, yeah?**

 **So...**

 **Let me know how you like it!**

 **Enjoy~**

 **Note:- Readers, I'm following the anime version here, which means that Haibara has not yet been introduced in the story at all, and her case will take place _after_ the Naniwa Serial Murder Case, and not before as was done in the manga. Thanks for bearing with with me! :)**

 **.**

"Dialogues"

' _Thoughts'_

* * *

Chapter 10: Opportune Phone Calls

* * *

It had been late by the time all case formalities had been completed and the police left. Dousan-san kindly offered to let them stay over for another night, and Heiji and Conan finally allowed themselves a peaceful night sleep.

The previous two nights had been spent half awake-half asleep, trying to piece together clues and witness statements. All they caught was a couple of hours of shut-eye in the library after lunch, or at the breakfast table with a cup of coffee. The case had been a priority and nothing Ran could say had deterred Conan. As even Mouri senior had spent most of his time helping out the police, Conan had been free to stay up as long as he wished to.

"You two can share a room, if you like," a maid offered, "unless Conan-sama would be sleeping in Mouri-sama's room?"

"No, I'll be with Heiji-nii-chan," Conan agreed almost immediately.

"The old man snores?" Heiji asked in amusement after the maid left.

"You wouldn't believe how loudly," came the grumble, "Never during a case, but in the middle of the night? Totally."

That reminded Heiji, "Yeah, you were going to tell me. The reason behind 'Sleeping Kogoro'…"

The pseudo-child paused at that. Taking off the covers, he climbed onto the bed, allowing Heiji to occupy the other side, before he spoke,

"My first case – a false kidnapping turned real – ended with me banged up against a wall, and Ran playing karate master to bring down the perp,"

Heiji quietly listened, not interrupting when he realised that Kudo wasn't merely telling him about the story behind 'Sleeping Kogoro', but the whole story form the beginning. While he knew about the men in black, he did not know much else. Heiji still followed Tokyo Times to keep up with the news, but Mouri's cases had been less of a priority than finding Kudo Shinichi and the reason behind his disappearance.

"I then realised, how much of a liability this body was. Not only could I not keep up with criminals physically, but also mentally. I mean, I was just a kid – the police would definitely not listen to me. And if I proved myself intelligent beyond my years, that would draw a lot of attention towards me, attention I did not need,"

Kudo turned to look at him, trying to impart how important it was that he listen to the truth – the previously undisclosed, unbridled, clear truth – and _understand_ , with just his gaze.

"I began staying with Ran because Kogoro-san is a detective. A detective agency brings in cases. The more famous it is, the better the quality of cases. It was my only means of accessing cases and investigating the men who shrunk me."

"Did you, then? Come across a case leading to them?"

"Yes," Conan whispered, "yes, I did."

A beat of silence, then,

"So, first I had to make Occhan famous. But that was no easy job, you know. He wouldn't listen to me because I'm a kid, so there was no way I could help him in investigations. Then Hakase made the bow-tie,"

"Hakase?"

"My neighbour, Kudo Shinichi's neighbour, I mean," Conan made a frustrated sound, "that's irritating. Having to specify who is acquainted with which me,"

Heiji couldn't say anything to that but, "I understand. You can talk freely, ya know? I can only ever see ya as Kudo anyway. Unless ya tell me something specific abou' Conan, I'm gonna keep assumin' that it's yourself yer talking about,"

"Myself, huh?" Conan sighed, "I'm not even myself any longer,"

"You could be," Heiji suggested quietly, "Being Conan in front of everyone must be stressful… With me, ya could be just Kudo."

Kudo was silent at that. After a minute, when Kudo simply continued his tale, seemingly ignoring Heiji's words, the Osakan understood.

In the simple way Kudo's shoulders had relaxed, his head tilted backwards with his eyes closed and in the manner he'd suddenly taken off his glasses to set them on the table beside the bed, it was clear. It was clear that he was taking Heiji's words to heart, that he was taking a leap of faith here and extending his trust to his rival – friend, fellow detective. Instead of Heiji pressing upon the matter, as he'd done at the Holmes' Tour, this time Kudo was voluntarily narrating the story. And that made all the difference…

"The bow-tie was simply a means to call Ran in my own voice to reassure her about my safety. And then I thought, if I could imitate voices with the bow-tie, I need only solve cases in Occhan's voice, and give him the credit! And that led to the making of the wrist-watch tranquilizer."

Kudo's face pinched with phantom pain before smoothing out again.

"After that, becoming Sleeping Kogoro and solving cases was just so _easy_ … so perfect for my goal of making Occhan famous, I no longer stopped to think if it was _right_ …"

And it wasn't, Heiji knew, it wasn't right to do this to the old man. But, stuck as he was with a huge crime syndicate ready to obliterate him and anyone close to him if things went south… Heiji could see why he chose to hide behind Kogoro and play puppet master.

It was _wrong_ on so many levels, but ultimately necessary. Perhaps he could have chosen another way. Perhaps he _would_ have, given time and enough thought. But as Conan had said, that had been – was… _is_ – the easy way to do things and now it was too late to change it.

So, Conan – Shinichi – began telling him about all the cases he'd solved as Sleeping Kogoro, beginning from Okino Yoko's case, the Shinkansen Bombing case – where he'd discovered the code names of the men in black, Gin and Vodka – to the Moonlight Sonata case. Conan had paused there, hesitating a mere moment before ploughing on.

"It took place on Tsukikage Island; the Moonlight Sonata case," Conan began, "If I had to be professional, I could call it the Asai Narumi serial murder case. But, to me, it would always be the Moonlight Sonata case,"

"Moonlight Sonata…as in Beethoven?"

"Yes. The killer, Asai Narumi-san, kept leaving codes in the form of music sheets from Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata. His father – yes, Asai was a man whose birth name was Asoh Seiji – Asoh Keiji was murdered. Burnt alive in his home which was barricaded from outside. Everyone in the family died that day…"

"Except his son, Asoh Seiji," Heiji concluded, "So the motive was revenge?"

"Yes, but it was such a moot point," Conan made a frustrated sound, "Asoh senior went out playing Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, and in his music sheets, he'd left a code for his son,"

"To exact revenge?"

"No," Conan whispered, "to give up on it. To live, to survive, to be happy. He wanted his son to live."

Conan looked up at Heiji with a derisive smirk, "And did you know that Asoh Seiji had personally invited us? Invited Occhan? We thought it was a challenge at first. But I think, deep down, he wanted someone to _stop_ him."

Conan turned his head away then, "And I failed."

Heiji didn't know what to say. He could offer no platitudes, as they would be all false.

As detectives they had to remember that that their deductions were going to send a person to prison. The culprit may not always be cold-blooded and remorseless. Many repented, but regardless of any personal feelings, one had to pursue the truth and deliver it. Their actions did not always bring about a happy end, but that was just how things were.

"He was going to commit suicide in the end," Conan continued, "spread gasoline," he gave a slight choked sound here, "all over the place and lit it on fire. I tried to tell him that this was not what his father wanted for him! That he could get a second chance if he escaped now…but it came to nothing. He…he just threw me out the glass window – saving _me_ – and condemned himself to death,"

 _'Oh my,'_ Heiji sucked in a sharp breath, ' _Fire? Gasoline? No wonder Kudo reacted that way when he saw that flask in Miyuki-han's room. And his comment about detectives being no better than murderers …instead of convincing the culprit to live, he was forcefully evicted from the burning house by the killer himself,'_

Heiji could he see the other reason it vexed him for. Had he not been shrunk, it was quite possible that Asoh Seiji might have been saved that day. Had he not been shrunk, he would not have been bodily removed from the flaming house, leaving Seiji to die.

"Instead of saving him from the fire, he saved me," Conan said bitterly, "and then, as the flames began to char the place, he played the piano…"

"Moonlight Sonata?"

"Aa, and a message – 'Thank you, little detective'," Conan buried his face in his hands, letting out a tired sigh, "After everything, he thanked me. _Thanked_ me…and I couldn't save him at all."

Conan stared off into space then, "That was my first failure as a detective, the only time a culprit managed to commit suicide in front of me. And I vowed that it would be my last."

"I don't want to feel like a murderer again," Conan whispered as he closed his eyes. Then suddenly, he smiled, "I was really quite glad to know that this case did not end that way. Dousan-san's words were just what Miyuki-san needed to hear,"

Heiji went back to his thoughts after that, letting Kudo gather himself up, ' _Hmm, that's true. If Nagato-han hadn't encouraged Miyuki-han and scolded her for contemplating suicide, tha' lady would have kept attempting. What a stroke of luck that he knew her mother. And that she turned out to be the chairman's first love too,'_

Heiji sighed, _'Well, at least the old man was not called here for nothing. We did end up finding the chairman's first love after all. Wait…wait, wait, wait! How did Kudo know about that even before Nagato-han said it?'_

"Oi, Kudo –!"

Heiji whipped around to ask him, but he was asleep. Chuckling, Heiji pushed himself under the covers too, deciding to continue the conversation in the morning.

* * *

"Say, Kudo," Heiji began when Ran and Kogoro went off to purchase their train tickets, leaving Heiji and Conan alone on the platform, "something's been bothering me fer a while…how was it that you were… _you_ , that first time we met?"

Conan grimaced at that, swinging himself down from the bench they'd seated themselves on, before turning to face Heiji, "Bar'ou, firstly, don't say my name so casually out loud –"

"Yeah, yeah, can't help it –"

"– secondly, that was all _your_ fault!"

"Oi! How was that _my_ fault?"

"I'll tell you that story another time…"

Satisfied with that for now, Heiji leaned back, hands folded behind his head, "Oh, and before I forget again, give me yer phone number,"

"What?" Conan blinks at the absurd request.

"Yer phone number, Ku-Conan," Heiji repeats, making an effort to not say Kudo, "And I know ya have one, no way ya wouldn't. So, hand it over, 'cause I need a better way to contact you than calling Mouri-han as a detective for some case,"

"And what makes you think I want to give you a way to contact me?" But Conan's words contradicted his actions as he pulled out a phone from his coat pocket, "Tell me your number and I'll give you a call so that you get mine,"

"Sure,"

Phone numbers exchanged, they settled down once again.

"So, how did ya figure out that Miyuki-han's mother was Nagato-han's first love?"

"Wasn't that what you called me for?" Conan asked with a smirk, "I was just doing my job,"

"Shut up," Heiji scowled, "Ya know that was just an excuse…but really, how did ya figure it out? I mean, apart from the fact that the chairman confirmed it last night…"

"It was just a hunch, really," Conan explained, "I figured his first love must be her mother because he made up that lie to cover up for her,"

 _'…Dousan-san answered a couple of Megure's questions, assuring the Inspector that he was not left alone at any time and that Miyuki had been at his side till Ran came up to take her place…'_

"I see," Heiji placed his chin between his fingers, "I thought he lied and said Miyuki didn't leave his side as atonement for his son's wrongdoing, but I guess it had another meaning,"

Conan smiled, "I bet you the chairman suddenly wanted to see his first love, because he saw her likeness in Miyuki-san,"

"Hmm," Heiji narrowed his eyes, "Hey, Kudo, don't tell me ya knew that the whole time and hid it from me?"

"Alright," Conan smirked, "I won't tell –"

"Ah! You said 'Kudo' again!"

Ran's sudden exclamation startled both of them, making them jump guiltily. She fixed a piercing gaze on Heiji, trying to pull out the truth from him with her eyes alone,

"Ne, when you say 'Kudo', do you mean –?"

 _'Yikes!_ ' Heiji laughed shakily, "A-ah, w-well, what I m-meant was…Kudoi!"

Conan gave him a panicked glance and Heiji mussed up his hair as he explained to Ran, "Ku-do-i (annoying or verbose). This kid kept asking me over and over about the case, so I told him he was verbose!"

Looking mollified, Ran left it at that.

"Your Osakan heritage certainly shines through at such times," Conan said dryly.

"When it comes to puns, we're the best in Japan," Heiji winked.

* * *

Life passed on peacefully after that. Heiji still received the occasional case from his classmates or from some ridiculously absurd sources or just by hanging around Otaki-han.

And even though Heiji had gotten Kudo's phone number from him last time, he'd never once called. There had been no reason to and he'd found himself hesitant every time he did pick up his phone with the intention to do so. For the question was: What would they even talk about?

In his uncertainty, Heiji had let the matter be, finding no point in obsessing over it at the moment. Should the time come to call Kudo, should the need arise; Heiji would not dally in doing so. But currently, there was no urgency and Heiji stopped pondering too hard on it.

* * *

Shinmei Nintaro's Detective Samonji series were one of the most popular mystery series in Japan. Needless to say, when Shinmei-san's newest work was released, Heiji wasted no time in purchasing it and reading it through.

That had been two months ago, however, and with all the drama about Kudo and his mysterious case, Heiji had never gotten around to finish reading the book.

 _'Man, this guy writes fantastically,'_ Heiji sighed in contentment as he turned another page, _'He's building up the mystery slowly, and he's already piled up a few clues in the starting chapters. Suspense at its finest…'_

The book was indeed well written with a simple yet artistic flair that made creative use of the Japanese language. There were idioms and phrases used in everyday life, puns that were both easy and difficult to spot, quite a few kanji characters that made Heiji look up a dictionary, elements of mystery and adventure that only continued to thrill the reader further… but there was one thing that puzzled Heiji.

The title of the book 'The Climax of ½' made no sense. At all.

Heiji had finished reading the first part of the novel – the second part having not yet been released – and he'd not understood why the book had been named so.

Was it that the story would reach a point of climax half-way through? No, couldn't be, Heiji had read it through and through without getting to a point where such an incident occurred.

Was it that the story would span across half a day? Half a month, perhaps? Half of any sort of time period? That didn't make any sense either. For one, that was not Shinmei-sensei's writing style. He used more plot-twists and creative clues than using _time_ as an instrumental part of the story. For two, the story had already spanned across a period of three weeks and Heiji had not read anything monumental in the first half of that time period or second half.

Was it the words itself? Hmm, that had some merit… Heiji would have to check it through.

* * *

' _Damn, why didn't I realise sooner?'_ Heiji cursed as he ran out of his room, nearly skidding through the long hall-way before reaching the sitting room.

Hattori Shizuka was currently talking on the phone, but Heiji ignored that as he bounded up to his mother.

"Okan, I need the phone!"

"Just a minute, Hei-chan."

"Now, Okan!"

"Yes, yes, in a minute, dear –"

Heiji growled as he swiped the phone from her, making a mental note to apologise for his rude actions later, before speaking into the receiver, "Hello, sorry to cut this mid-way. My mother will call ya later –"

"Heiji?"

The voice made him pause, "Oyaji?!"

Then shaking his head, Heiji continued, "Later, Oyaji, someone's life may be in danger –" his mother gasped beside him "– and I need to make a call now,"

Ending the call and simultaneously flipping open the book he'd carried with him (The Climax of ½) to the front pages where details of the publishing house were listed, Heiji dialled in a number.

Shizuka excused herself as the ring tone sounded, "I'll be in my room, tell me what this is all about later, okay, Heiji?"

Giving her a distracted reply, Heiji nodded.

The ring tone continued to ring, but the line went unanswered. Finally,

"Hello, you've reached the Literature Times –"

"I've figured out the code!" Heiji nearly shouted out in urgency, "Call the police to yer publishing agency immediately, this is very important!"

"Wha –?" The voice at the other end sputtered, "You've figured out the code? May I ask who's calling?"

Heiji nearly groaned at the other man's dithering, couldn't he see how important this was?

"Just call the police first! I'll tell ya everything else later –"

The other line went silent then and Heiji wondered if he'd been cut off because they thought it was a prank, "Hello! Hello? Dammit!"

A faint rustling sound, then a different voice spoke up, "Uh, hello?"

"COME ON! Ya idiot! How many damn times are ya gonna make me say it? Hurry and bring the damn cops!" Heiji shouted, thoroughly irritated now.

"Yeah, hello to you too Hattori-kun, this is Megure speaking," Inspector Megure said in a resigned tone.

The sound of the Inspector's voice calmed Heiji down.

"Oh…you're there already, Inspector?" Heiji chuckled sheepishly, _'Can't believe I just shouted at him and called him an idiot! But…that was fast. He did come very quickly…'_

Ignoring the strangely prompt appearance of the Inspector for now, Heiji concentrated on the task.

"So, what did you call for, Hattori-kun?"

"For the codes," Heiji replied, slightly relaxed now that the police were there, "I solved a code hidden in a novel called 'The Climax of ½'. When I first read it, it got on my nerves…but on re-reading it I realised that these dialogues are in code!"

"In code?!"

"Yeah, the key to it is the title of the novel – The Climax of ½. Shinmei-sensei wished that someone would crack the code and understand the real message hidden in the novel,"

Megure sucked in a sharp breath, "So? What's the answer to this code? You solved it, right?"

"Aa," Heiji agreed, "The first part makes perfect sense. Take all the dialogues the story has that was written by Shinmei-sensei by a character that is himself. Ya know, the author himself appears in the story as a character, right? So taking the first dialogue, ya have ta take the top half of each line and join them together…"

Saying so, Heiji began to tell him which kanjis they had to pick out, meld together to form a new word and read them together.

"So, when you're done with that," Heiji continued, "You're left with 'ta', 'suke', 'te', 'ku' and 're',"

He waited for the Inspector to catch up and soon enough, Megure gave a small gasp, "Tasukete kure! Please help!"

Heiji sighed in relief when the Inspector was finally aware of the situation. Now, at least, they could take some action.

"Dammit!" Megure cursed unexpectedly and inelegantly, "An SOS?!"

"Yeah," Heiji replied, "My mother was excited to know that this was the first novel in ten years. So, my guess is that the culprit may be some kind of overzealous fan or possibly someone plotting to take the payment for the manuscripts…"

"Hey! Did you make the payment yet?" Megure yelled at someone.

Heiji raised an eyebrow, ' _Ignoring me, are ya? The message's not complete yet,'_

"Yosh!" The Inspector called out, "First check for any suspicious fan letters –"

The voice faded away and Heiji realised that the Inspector was moving away from the phone, "Oi! The code isn't solved yet!"

Hearing no answer, Heiji called out again only to be met with silence and a hustling noise that indicated a flurry of activity going on at the other end.

"Uh? Inspector? Hey! Where the heck did ya go? Oi! Man, ya need ta stop messin' with me…" Heiji sighed; shouting now would make no difference.

But really, how irresponsible of the keibu to just leave a phone call in the middle – especially one made by a detective that would be helpful to solving the case.

"But, Hattori," a familiar, _familiar_ voice drawled into the phone all of a sudden, "About the other dialogue lines…"

"Huh?"

Heiji blinked in surprise, ' _Damn, am I hearing things? Is that Kudo? The heck did he come from?'_

"Kudo! It's you! What's up man?" Heiji grinned happily, _'Really, to have bumped into each other again, and so unpredictably!'_

"Nothing, I just happened to be here," Kudo replied sarcastically,

"Well, of course!" Heiji replied in good humour, surprised yet delighted to have suddenly encountered his rival – on yet _another_ case, but still... "We have so much in common, we always run into each unexpectedly!"

"Yeah, anyway, the code…"

Paying very little attention to the code now that Kudo was already present on scene to handle the case, Heiji put forth an invitation, "Hey, why don't ya come ta Osaka? I'll feed ya some tasty ramen! The ones in Tokyo are very strong flavoured and the spices are way too much!"

"I'm hanging up…" Kudo replied in response, his voice fading as if he actually meant to put the phone down.

"Okay, sorry, sorry. The code, right…" Heiji chuckled in amusement, _'It's always all work and no play with ya, isn't it? Geez, man, ya need ta relax sometimes. Hmm, I'll probably call ya later again to issue a proper invitation,'_

"Looks like we need more clues to solve the rest of it," Kudo said, the rustling of papers indicated that he had the book at hand too,

"Yeah," Heiji agreed, "while the first code was easily solved, the rest of them don't match up with the pattern used in the first…"

"Yes, and even if we remove the parts that do not fit in, it still makes no sense," Kudo replied.

Heiji sighed then _, 'What's the use of this, really? I can't actually do much all the way here in Osaka,'_

"What's wrong Hattori?" Kudo asked at his silence, a hint of worry in his voice that would have gone unnoticed had Heiji not been a detective,

"This is stupid," Heiji ruffled his hair.

"Huh?"

"Why do I need to be puzzling over this code from so far away when you're right there at the scene?" Heiji asked rhetorically, "I'll leave the rest up ta ya, Kudo! And I'll let ya know if I come up with something else!"

"Hey, hold on! Wait a sec –!"

Before Kudo could complete the sentence, Heiji had moved away from the server, done with the conversation.

Putting the phone down, Heiji smirked a bit, ' _Looks like ya actually liked collaborating forces ta solve cases with me, didn't ya, Kudo? Man, ya really need ta come visit Osaka…I've got tons of places ta show ya, and show ya what **real** ramen tastes like too…'_

"Okan!" Heiji called out as he left the room, "Phone's free!"

Shizuka poked her head out of her room, "Oh, that's all right. I'll talk to your father later. What happened to the case? Is it over?"

"Nah," Heiji shook his head, unconcerned.

"No?" Shizuka was puzzled, "You left the case unsolved and you're not even bothered? I'm surprised."

Heiji grinned, "Kudo's already on the case. No point in me trying ta bang my head here, is there?"

Shizuka shook her head in amusement, "Kudo-san, again? The both of you certainly run into each other at bizarre times,"

"Hmm, we do, don't we?" Heiji shrugged, leafing through the book once more, "You want to read it now, Okan? I'm done with this book."

"Ah, yes," Shizuka accepted it from her son eagerly, looking like an excited school-girl on her first field-trip, "It's Shinmei-sensei's first book in ten years! I can't wait to read it!"

Heiji grinned at his mother's antics, deciding not to tell her about the truth behind the story and its code. She'd enjoy it better that way.

"Oh, and Heiji?" Shizuka paused, turning around to address her son before she disappeared into the world of mystery spun by Shinmei Nintaro, "Do invite Kudo-san to Osaka soon, would you? I'm quite interested to meet this young man you've become such good friends with,"

Heiji smiled at that, _'Great minds think alike, huh, Okan? I'm gonna do that soon enough. And while I will never be able to introduce you to Kudo Shinichi in the flesh, I can certainly introduce you to Edogawa Conan. Pity you'll never realise they're one and the same. Pity I'll never **let** you realise that…not as long as that organisation's after Kudo, anyway,'_

* * *

"Hei-chan…" Otaki-han was slightly nervous, "Did you make anything of it?"

Heiji sighed, scratching his head, "Not really, Otaki-han. I'm feeling a little out of depth here. I think we should start preparing for the ransom, by the way. I'll try to think of something by that time,"

Inspector Otaki agreed and complied.

The case – a kidnapping – had been covertly reported after the kidnapper had ordered the family of the child to not call the police. Naturally, being the sensible citizens they were, they _did_ call the police.

Hanasaki Miki, daughter of Hanasaki Mizuki and Hanasaki Tetsumi, was a young music prodigy. The young girl, only ten years old, had already won quite a few awards in music. Her parents, both famous and rich musicians themselves, had been very proud of her accomplishments.

Hanasaki Miki was also said to have perfect pitch – a rare auditory phenomenon characterized by the ability of a person to identify or re-create a given musical note without the benefit of a reference tone.

Heiji had gone along with the police to help out, but till now there had been two phone calls from the kidnapper, and he'd gotten no clues out of it at all.

The kidnapper had muffled their voice to confuse them of their gender and never talked long enough for them to be able to track the call. Also, the victim, Miki-san, had not been allowed to talk at all. To confirm that she was fine and unhurt, both times the kidnapper had held out the phone to let them listen to her play a piece on the piano.

 _'Gah, I can't make out anything,'_ Heiji let out a frustrated sound, _'If only Miki-chan had been able to talk, she might have given away some clue…The echoing sound of the music indicates that she must be in some kind of large room. A music hall? But wouldn't the kidnapper be caught if he took her to such a frequented place? Dammit…'_

"Hattori-kun," Miki's mother, Tetsumi whispered to him, "I've heard of you. You're a pretty well-known detective, and have solved many difficult cases. You'll be able to bring my daughter back to me, won't you?"

Heiji offered her a smile, "I'll do my best, Hanasaki-han. And the police will not give up till they get your daughter back,"

Her husband joined them then, "Dear, did you recognise those notes?"

Heiji narrowed his eyes, _'Notes? Wait, were they of some particular song? Was it a clue?'_

Even as Tetsumi shook her head in denial, Heiji tried to recollect some of the famous songs he'd heard.

"Mizuki-han, Tetsumi-han," Heiji began, "Was there something odd about those notes that Miki-chan played?"

"Nothing odd per say," Mizuki-san told him, "just that it was certainly not a part of any piece I've heard before. And I've played nearly all the famous ones there are. My wife has composed a few too. It is a part of neither."

"And she played that same piece twice," Tetsumi added, "I don't know why, but perhaps there is something in those notes…"

"Do you recognise the notes?" Heiji demanded, ' _This might be it! The clue Miki-chan sent us!'_

"No," Mizuki shook his head, "At least, not without reference. I can tell you what notes they were, but their combination was odd." Seeing Heiji's confused face, he grimaced, "I'm not making sense, am I?"

Heiji smiled ruefully as the couple was called away by the police.

The case was certainly growing on Heiji's nerves. While the detective may have had a photographic memory and a near perfect recall of any sound or object perceived by his senses, recognising them was often difficult. If he'd never come across it before, how was he supposed to recognise it anyway?

"If only I had perfect pitch like Miki-chan," Heiji murmured thoughtfully, "recognising the sounds she played and the possible clue hidden in them would have been easy. If her parents had perfect pitch, they might have been able to help out too."

Because, while the Hanasaki couple might have been famous musicians, they were certainly no prodigies. Their fame came from hard-work and practice done for years. To recognise those notes, they'd have to play each key on the piano to link the sounds to know for sure and then combine it all together to make sense. It would take time – time they did not have.

Then, a memory, unbidden, came to Heiji's mind.

 _'…A deduction duet! It will be perfect…'_

 _'…Sounds interesting. A **duet** , though? Odd choice of word…'_

 _'…Asai Narumi-san kept leaving codes in the form of music sheets…'_

 _'…He played the piano…Moonlight Sonata…and a message – 'Thank you, little detective'…'_

Heiji's eyes widened, "That's it!"

Pulling out his phone, he scrolled down the contact lists to reach upon Conan – Kudo had forbade him from putting his real name on it – and immediately pressed dial.

A relieved grin began to creep up on Heiji's face, _'If Kudo could understand a message from merely hearing it, he should be able to do the same now! Yes, finally! Progress!'_

"Hello?"

"Kudo!"

"Hattori? What is it? Do you know what time it is? I'm in school right now. Speaking of which, why aren't you in school?"

"No time! Kidnapping case – I'll tell ya the details later," Heiji explained in a rush, "I need ya to do something for me –"

"Okay," Kudo agreed immediately, with not a single protest and Heiji sighed thankfully, "Wait a moment till I get out of class. Talking sneakily by bending under the desk is nowhere near comfortable…"

A chuckle burst out before Heiji could stop and Otaki-keibu frowned at him. Even the Hanasaki's looked at him oddly, but Heiji couldn't care. He beckoned the Inspector over and pointed at the phone,

"Getting help from a friend. Bring the recording of the music notes Miki-chan played,"

"Hei-chan," Otaki-han protested, "You know we can't leak out information like this. Your father –"

"I'll handle it with my father," Heiji interrupted harshly, "And besides, he'll have no problem with it when I tell him who I talked with about the case…"

"Who _are_ you talking with?"

Heiji simply shook his head, knowing better than to talk about Kudo loudly, even in the presence of police. That he talked about Kudo inside his house with his parents was enough, no need for anyone else to know about it – besides, policemen gossiped liked old house wives. Heiji was not taking any chance that it got leaked that Kudo Shinichi had assisted in a kidnapping case; not when said detective was missing…and presumed dead.

"Hattori?" Kudo said, "Tell me now, what do you want me to do?"

"There's a recording," Heiji accepted the recorder from another officer, flicking it to rewind, "A musical recording. Ya told me before that you could understand messages played on it right?"

"Yes," Kudo paused, "Has the kidnapped victim played a music piece or something?"

"Yeah," Heiji said seriously, "I have the recording with me here. Girl's a prodigy, so I _think_ she's placed a code in it. The piece she's played made no sense to the parents, so there's a possibility,"

"Okay, play it," Kudo told him, "I'll translate and you can see if it makes any sense,"

Agreeing, Heiji waited till the device had rewound completely and then pressed play –

 _EFD#BF BA#D#_ _AGF EBDF_

"That's what she played the first time the kidnapper called," Heiji said, "The second time sounds the same, but here you go –"

 _EFD#BF BA#D#_ _AGF EBDF_

There was a beat of silence, before Kudo spoke up, "Play it again."

Heiji complied and after nearly five times, Kudo gave an answer, "Hmm, okay. I think I've got it down now. You're right by the way; both times the music notes played were the same,"

"And?"

"Wait a moment," Kudo replied, "give me a minute to figure it out…by the phonetics and the alphabetical representations, I think…"

"They need the ransom in an hour," Heiji cautioned when Otaki-han made a motion to hurry up.

"Yeah, yeah," Kudo gave a distracted response, "Okay, I think I've got it. It's just…"

"What?"

"Is there a piano where you are?" Kudo asked, "I'm assuming you're at the victim's house? Do they have a piano there?"

"Wait a sec," Heiji turned towards the couple, "Mizuki-han? Where's your music room?"

"Down the hallway, second door on the right. I'll show –"

"No need," Heiji replied, waving off the butler who tried to follow despite his refusal, "Yeah, there's a piano here. What next?"

"I can't hear a couple of tones properly," Kudo explained, "the recording is creating dissonance when I'm hearing through the phone. I need you to play for me,"

"I don't know shit about anythin' about music, Kudo," Heiji warned.

"That's fine," Kudo dismissed, "Just sit down at the piano."

"Yeah, done."

"Now, from your left, count keys till four and five,"

"Okay. The ones with the black key in between?"

"Exactly. Press that."

D#

"Softer, now. The same black key," Kudo instructed after a moment.

E _b_

"That fine?" Heiji asked,

"Yeah, that's fine. Now, count till the eleventh and twelfth keys,"

"Okay. Those ones have a black key too,"

"Press that. First, long and hard to produce a sharp sound. Then a soft, flat note,"

That done with, Kudo once more went silent, till, "Okay, Hattori, I have it!"

"Great! What does it say?"

"I'll leave the explanation for later," Kudo spoke hurriedly, "For now, all you need to know is, the girl played the notes to say: Higuchi ongaku hōru."

"Higuchi music hall?" Heiji repeated, "Alright! I'll call back, bye!"

Rushing out of the music room, Heiji pulled Otaki-han away, "Otaki-han, without alerting anyone, I need you to send a team to Higuchi music hall. That may be the place the kidnapper is at."

Otaki Goro blinked at him in surprise, "Hei-chan! How…?"

"Later, Otaki-han! First do what I said!"

* * *

The case came to a peaceful end.

Higuchi music hall was an old concert hall that had burnt down four years ago during a music recital. From the fire, all but two children – Hanasaki Miki and Endou Astushi – had been rescued. Even then, Miki-chan had managed to escape, while her friend Atsushi had perished.

Miki and Atsushi had tied that fateful day, both receiving first place in the competition. But due to Atsushi's death, it was only Miki that had been awarded. That there had been another winner was not even present on any records.

Enraged by this, Endou Atsushi's father, Asahi-san had staged the kidnapping. He had had no inclination of returning the child, only making her parents watch as she burned to death in the old music hall when they came to deliver the ransom.

The four year gap was only because Miki was to participate in another concert soon – organised by the same organisers as those of four years ago, the Higuchi's. The father, blinded by psychotic rage, had found this enough of a reason to kill her.

Endou Asahi would be undergoing psychiatric treatment before being tried in court.

"Hmm," Kudo sighed as Heiji relayed that information to him the next day, "I suppose you want to know about the music codes now?"

Heiji thought about it, "Nah. I'm not going to be able to learn it either way, so I suppose there's no point."

Kudo laughed, "I guess that's true,"

Heiji hummed before asking, "So, are Nee-chan and that old man free this weekend?"

"I guess so… Yes, most probably," Kudo answered, "Why?"

"Great!" Heiji grinned, "Then all of you are comin' ta Osaka this weekend!"

"Oi! What about my schedule? What if _I'm_ not free?"

"Please! Yer a primary school kid, what could you be busy for?" Heiji dismissed with a smirk, "Your schedule is always free,"

"No."

"Huh?" Heiji blinked, "What do ya mean by 'No'?"

"I'm not free," Kudo replied haughtily, "I've got work to do, cases to solve…unlike this free bird I know, so 'No'!"

"Nonsense!" Heiji denied, "Work? Cases? Yer comin' ta Osaka. Besides, Okan wants ta meet all of ya. Especially you."

"Me?" Kudo repeated in surprise, "Wait, which 'me' are you talking about?"

"Don't worry, man," Heiji chuckled, "I've not told anyone anything –"

"You _better_ have not,"

"– so, yeah, while she does want to meet Kudo Shinichi, I'm gonna introduce Edogawa Conan to her. She's a bit curious about 'Conan-kun' too."

There was pause, "Is there some other reason you're calling me there?"

Heiji furrowed his brows, ' _Other reason?'_

"You know," Kudo continued, "like that last case where you called me to search for someone's _first love_ , which is really…what do you take me for? I'm a _homicide_ detective –!"

Heiji barked out a laugh at that, "No, no! No finding some lady love. Just come to Osaka, I'll show ya around. You've never been here, have ya?"

"Well…no, but –"

"Then it's final!" Heiji decided with a grin, "This weekend, okay?"

"Okay," Kudo agreed grudgingly, "this weekend, then."

"Excellent!"

"Sure, sure," Kudo grumbled, "as long as there is no inane case waiting for me…"

"Of course not," Heiji assured, slightly amused at Kudo scepticism and sarcastic undertones, "See ya, then, Kudo!"

Heiji grinned slightly as he ended the call. He couldn't wait to show Kudo the wonderful Osaka.

"Okan!" Heiji called out, "They're coming this weekend!"

"Who's coming exactly?" Heizo asked as he entered the house, "Any guests I ought to know about?"

"Hey, Oyaji!" Heiji grinned, "Conan, Nee-chan and the old man. I've invited them over,"

"Oh that's good," Shizuka smiled, "What about Kudo-san? Is he not accompanying them?"

"Nah," Heiji softened, smiling regretfully at his mother, "He can't make it. But I'll introduce you to Conan-kun, okay?"

"Hmm," Heizo nodded, "I'd like to meet him too. Pity I couldn't stay for long last time."

Last time – the Nagato murder case. To the police and his own parents, Heiji had relayed a fabricated tale where he and Mouri had combined forces to catch the culprit. Conan's involvement had been left out completely. But his parents had been hearing about what a smart boy he was since weeks, so his above age intelligence wouldn't be much of a surprise to the Hattori's – Heiji had planned very carefully what image of Conan he would be projecting to them and Kudo had agreed to it too.

"Say, Oyaji," Heiji turned to his father suddenly, "I'd like a favour…"

Heizo narrowed his eyes, "Why do I feel I'm not going to like this?"

Heiji grinned, "I'd like ta borrow transportation for touring the Mouri's and Conan. So…?"

"A police car?" Heizo guessed, "Very well, I'll let you pick out your chaperon too…just remember that should there be any emergency, the car will cease to be transportation and become a police van."

"Got it."

"And do tell them that they're invited for dinner," Shizuka added.

"Will do, Okan,"

His mother appeased and father departing for his evening bath, Heiji went off on his own, deciding to call and tell Kazuha that he'll be busy next weekend.

Kazuha never seemed to appreciate when he talked about Kudo, anyway, so it might not be a good idea to introduce them right away. Perhaps during dinner? Hmm, that would be appropriate.

At least, Heiji hoped this visit with Kudo wouldn't end like all the others did – right in the middle of a case. That's all he seemed to be involved in whenever he met up with the Detective of the East.

Hopefully, _hopefully_ …the visit to Osaka would be peaceful.

* * *

xxx

Tasukete kure - Literally means "Please help".

 _EFD#BF BA#D#_ _AGF EBDF - Higuchi Ongaku H_ ō _ru =_ Musical Notes taken from Moonlight Sonata Murder Case.

xxx

* * *

 **AN: How was it? I've included the ending of the last case and started a new one here, as you can see. Hope it didn't create much of a confusion. Also, next will be the 'Naniwa Serial Murder Case', pretty important and loooong, so it will take an equally long time for me to re-watch it, understand all the nuances and little details and then type it down from Heiji's point of view so that it makes sense.  
**

 **Do be a dear and leave a review, yes?**

 **.**

 **To winx club - Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you liked the last chapter, and I hope this lives up to your expectations too! Nice to know I'm making an accurate, or near accurate portrayal of Shinichi/Conan :)**

 **To Rockster - Thanks for reviewing! It's always a pleasure to know that you've been enjoying my story! And that you liked the deduction duet... :) About Conan's thought of detectives being no better than murderers when they drive a culprit to suicide...I hope this chapter answered that query of yours. A very long chapter, I know, but I hope I've done it justice.**

 **Yes, Shinichi is just as imperfect as others, and I while I watched DC, I kinda felt that Heiji didn't always think so; the way he asks Conan a couple of times "Hey, Kudo, am I wrong?" in the Tottori Spider Mansion Case and Tantei Koushien Case with Hakuba Saguru, it felt like that very first loss against Kudo weighed on his mind, making him believe that Conan's reassurance that he was right was needed to him. Well, Conan always answered, "No, you're right, Hattori," So, it might only be that they were confirming their deductions with each other, but who knows...**

 **Ah, thanks for telling me; I corrected it now. I usually watch on gogoanime DOT io, no adds there at all :P Geez, they don't let you type anything that might be a link? Even when it's NOT a link? Anything at all? Geez...**

 **Oh, an anime based on a gaming series. I'll check out Ace Attorney then. Probably after my exams, though... :) Death Note is not yet decided, and I've got enough fics to write at the moment without adding another to it :P But, thanks for your opinion anyway :) I agree, the whole Akai family is shrouded in mystery...from mother and father, to the children (all having different surnames too!)**

 **Thanks for letting me know your thoughts on Episode 43. It was needed for my other fic "Consequences Of Our Actions", which may have an update coming out soon, but no guarantees :/ And Agasa's suit did make him look taller, and I think Conan asked him to do something like that for him sometime, but I think Agasa refused, saying "that it was impossible because he was a kid and would not be able to manage something like that plus it will be dangerous for him" blah blah... Not sure when he said it, but I'm pretty sure he did. And yes, it was funny in the end, but I remember being very panicked for Conan at the beginning, which is why the spin off was created. Thanks for letting me know your thoughts either way! :)**

 **.**

 **A** **ll of you silent readers out there - I hope you are liking this story. If you are (and if not) do please let me know by reviewing! It does not take much time and highly encourages me to write faster! But, thank you all the same :)  
**

 **So...**

 **REVIEW!**


	11. Interlude: Kazuha

**AN: Just a short interlude. This had been planned and written since Chapter 7, can you believe it? So I thought, best not to keep you guys waiting, even though Chapter 11 has not yet been finished...  
**

 **The next chapter will be coming out after a looong time. So, till then... sorry for the wait.  
**

 **Enjoy~**

 **.**

"Dialogues"

 _'Thoughts'_

* * *

Interlude: Kazuha

* * *

Kazuha had first heard it from Miya-chan – who'd heard it from Shuuko-chan, who'd overheard Mizuki-kun and Fusue-kun talking – that Heiji was going to class 2-B, every break, without fail to meet with Amane Shiori-san.

At first, Kazuha had been sure that Miya-chan was joking. Heiji, and meet with a girl? Not possible.

All Heiji had in that detective riddled mind of his, was cases, cases and _more_ cases. Which was why Kazuha had been surprised it was true. Of course, it made much more sense to Kazuha when she learnt of the reason he met her for – to borrow a newspaper.

"What's so important about the Tokyo Times?" Kazuha had asked Heiji, "Tokyo's in the eastern part of Japan! Shouldn't you be more concerned about the west? Like Osaka?"

That was when she'd first heard of Kudo Shinichi, the so called 'Great Detective of the East' and Heiji's self-proclaimed rival. Heiji kept following Kudo's cases in the newspaper for three whole years, and Kazuha had long since stopped paying attention to Heiji's interest in that detective.

...

Heiji had admired a good many detectives, most of them soon losing that admiration when Heiji surpassed their level.

Maybe it would be different when it came to Kudo – who was apparently the same age as Heiji – but Kazuha did not truly believe that. Heiji had been the best detective she'd ever met, apart from Heizo-jii-san, and Kazuha strongly believed that Kudo could never match up to her friend.

When Heiji had suddenly gone off to Tokyo to look for Kudo, she'd been surprised and shocked. Heiji was actually paying so much interest to this Kudo? Perhaps, Kudo was a better detective than she believed him to be.

...

Heiji lost.

That was never something Kazuha thought she'd hear when it came to deductions. Heiji was the best detective she'd known! What was baffling was that Heiji did not truly seem to take the loss badly. He was almost… happy? Yes, happy. Not because he'd lost, Kazuha didn't think so, but because he'd met Kudo.

That was when the doubt trickled in. This Kudo – was she a girl? Heiji couldn't seem to stop talking about their meeting – okay, so she was exaggerating a bit – but it certainly seemed so to her.

And everyone had been using gender neutral pronouns while describing Kudo, even Shizuka-baa-chan and Heizo-jii-san. It was natural for her to doubt.

...

When Heiji had gone off the second time – and on a Sherlock Holmes tour, too! – Kazuha's doubt on Kudo's gender seemed to double. Was Heiji _actually_ going to see some girl?

It was natural to think so. No boy had ever held Heiji's attention for so long – all of them were too slow to keep up with him, Heiji said – and Heiji only ever interacted with one girl: her.

So, the only conclusion Kazuha could reach to, was that Heiji had actually, finally, _regretfully_ , found a romantic interest.

Not that Kazuha thought of Heiji in such a manner – of course not! – Well…perhaps she did, a little bit. Only slightly, though!

Thinking about Heiji with another girl was painful.

...

The good thing about the whole situation was that Kazuha had the one thing with Heiji that Kudo did not – familiarity. Kazuha had known Heiji since they were kids. They had played together, laughed together, learned together, and grown up together. They'd made memories with each other!

Kudo, for all she had – the brains, the intelligence, the interest in detective work; all of on which, Kazuha would admit, that she was never on par with Heiji – would certainly never match up to her!

 _'_ _But_ ,' a traitorous voice whispered in her mind, ' _what if Heiji doesn't want you? What if he wants Kudo? She is perfect for him! A detective, a challenge, a rival! Someone who could understand parts of him that you will never be able to…_ '

Kazuha had stubbornly squashed down those insecurities though. She could not really do anything about the situation when Heiji went off to Tokyo to meet Kudo.

But she knew, like any proud Osakan, Heiji would invite Kudo to Kansai. And when he did, she'd make certain to tell Kudo that Heiji was _hers_ – so could she _please_ keep her hands off him? And if Kudo didn't back down…well, she didn't have a Second Dan in Aikido for nothing.

* * *

xxx **  
**

Second Dan - second highest level in Aikido for black belt holders

Thanks to Rockster for pointing out what Dan Kazuha has.

xxx

* * *

 **AN: Hope you liked the interlude! It was short, yes, but since it was only an interlude, I hope it is okay...**

 **.**

 **To winx club - Thanks for reviewing! Glad you liked it! Also,** "Consequences Of Our Actions" **will be updated soon. Just give me a bit of time. Juggling all my stories and exams is slightly hectic. But, I'll be posting it soon, don't worry!**

 **To Rockster - Thanks for reviewing! You wouldn't believe how anxious I was for your review for the last chapter! 'Coz, you are my most harshest and honest critic, and I knew that any praise or criticism I recieve from you will be honest! So, really REALLY happy that the original case lived up to the readers' expectations! :) I loved writing about that too, in fact, there used to be guys in my class who would actually do it, so I thought Conan bending under the desk to receive phone calls? Perfect idea! Let's use it! :P  
**

 **I think what you say is true as well...checking if you're right with your most trusted comarade is perfectly natural. Yeah, that no one has EVER figured out who Conan is because of Heiji's little slip ups is honestly surprising :P Hey...you know, I never really thought why Heiji didn't use his own phone. I just used the manga and anime as referrence and since they showed him using the home phone to call, I just put it there in the fic...**

 **HA! Heizo letting his son borrow a police car seemed unbeliavable to me the first time I saw the anime, and even now that I'm rewatching it! But, he has to get permisssion from him somehow, so that was my take on it...**

 **Also, yes,** ' "That fine?" Heiji asked, ' **, is a purpsoeful typo for showing the Osakan drawl that I never seem to get down completely; writing** "you" **instead of** "ya" **,** "your" **instead of** "yer" **and** "for" **instead of** "fer" **. So, when I do remember, I try to incorporate it...**

 **And, if you have the time or inclination, do check out** "A Case Of Identity" **. Oh, wait...you don't really prefer M/M pairings. Sorry... :( I was hoping for your comments on it since there's a friendship genre in it as well, even though it IS primarily Romance, but... oh well :/**

 **DO let me know how Kazuha's thoughts panned out, okay? I hope her reasoning for believing Shinichi is a girl is fine :)**

 **Also, yup, next chapter will have a good deal of Heiji and Conan detective solving and friendship, and I hope I get the dream right, since it plays a huge part in the story...but you'll let me know that, right? :) And 800 episodes are a bit daunting, I agree. Shinmei Nintaro's case will get its completion in the next chapter too, I'm afraid. Didn't have the right setting before... Thanks once again! Hope you enjoyed this Interlude!**

 **.**

* * *

P.S. - Hey, readers! Have any of you watched 'Kimi no Na wa' (Your name) ?

It's a movie/anime, original source, and it's wonderfully written! The plotline may not be oh so unique, considering all of us must have come across it somewhere in various fanfic archives, but it is really well done!

It's about a girl (Mitsuha) and a boy (Taki) who switch bodies one sudden morning. They live in different parts of Japan, one in a town/village of Itomori and the other in the hustling city of Tokyo. Their lives are also varied, and now, stuck in each other's body, living each other's life is hard. What's more, it isn't permanent. One morning they're themselves, the other they're not and the next, they've switched again.

What is the cause for this? And what does the comet Tiamat have to do with it? Soon, realising the predicament they've found themselves in, they try to search for each other...all the while feeling like they're missing something. And their names, so simple and easily memorable, keeps slipping out of their minds...as if it was never meant to be...

A slightly supernatural story with a happy ending!

If my short preview interests you, do go and check it out!

* * *

 **.**

 **REVIEW!**


	12. Dreams Spell Disaster

**AN: Here's chapter 11. Sorry for the long wait... But, exams are sort of over for now (yes, sort of), so I'll be active on ffnet again :)  
**

 **Let me know how it is!**

 **Enjoy~**

 **.**

"Dialogues"

 _'Thoughts'_

.

Note:- The manga translation for this case is messed up, seriously. It's so difficult to make sense of the dialogues...and the anime is not much help either... Also, the dream was pretty hard to write. Linking cases together and keeping the story in flow was alos a bit hard to manage, but I hope I've gotten it right.

Anyone feeling like they're not getting it, please go back and read chapter 10: Opportune Phone Calls; I'm very sorry for the late update that caused this confusion. Anyway, here you go!

* * *

Chapter 11: Dreams Spell Disaster

* * *

 _At first, Heiji had no clue where he was. Everything was dark and hazy and unclear. There was a foggy mist curling up around his ankles. And despite the atmosphere he was in, Heiji felt strangely the mist slowly parted to reveal someone. A figure, shrouded in darkness, was slowly moving towards him. Yet, Heiji remained lax. Unmoving. Unbothered._

 _It was Kudo._

 _And then Heiji had to blink – because it really was Kudo! Not Conan, but the seventeen year old, arrogant, self-assured version of the Eastern Detective; Kudo Shinichi!_

 _"Kudo! W-What…?"_

 _"Hey, Hattori," Kudo spoke as if this was a completely natural thing._

 _The darkness had begun to recede now, and Heiji could make out streets, lamp posts and houses. They were in Osaka._

 _Osaka? Wasn't Kudo supposed to arrive this weekend? Or was it already the weekend? Things weren't making much sense to him…_

 _Both detectives started walking, side by side, in complete silence. The quiet atmosphere felt neither oppressive nor comforting. In fact, it didn't feel much like anything at all._

 _But, it seemed, Heiji's senses were perfectly content with not knowing anything about of the situation. Deciding to simply go with the flow, Heiji said nothing, accompanying Kudo to where it seemed they were going._

 _The hazy background cleared out soon and a street came into sharp relief. And there, lying in the middle of the road was a dead body._

 _"Another case?" Heiji muttered in disbelief, but readily began the investigation._

 _The scene changed; a sudden and drastic change that left Heiji feeling disoriented. His momentary confusion fading, he realised that he was running. In front of him was a man – presumably the culprit – and he and Kudo were chasing him._

 _"Stop!" Kudo called out authoritatively, but the man ignored it._

 _Heiji wondered how he came to the conclusion that the man was the killer, but nothing made much sense anyway, so the Osakan detective just went along with it._

 _Time seemed to slow, or was it perhaps faster? Heiji didn't know, didn't understand…but the next moment, the culprit had drawn out a knife and rushed towards them, plunging the knife into Heiji._

 _"Hattori!" Kudo's frantic shout made the killer turn towards him, the knife being pulled out of Heiji's side._

 _Heiji slipped down to his knees, a hand clasped over the wound. The blood kept flowing from between his fingers but strangely there was no dizziness, no pain, no…_

 _"Die! All of you die!" The culprit let out a crazed shout as he then began to stab Kudo repeatedly._

 _'This is wrong,' Heiji thought suddenly, 'That we'd be so easily hurt…with all my kendo practice he shouldn't have been able to land a single hit on me! And Kudo's athleticism should make him equally agile! This is wrong…'_

 _But no matter how wrong it was, it didn't stop Shinichi from collapsing and growing as still as the cold and dead corpses Heiji saw as a homicide detective. The murderer laughed manically, standing poised over Kudo, knife held in a victory pose before he turned tail and ran. Heiji…Heiji didn't care about the killer, scrambling up to run towards Kudo, bending down and pressing two fingers against his neck to check for a pulse – nothing. No pulse._

 _"No!" Heiji shook his friend roughly. The red of Heiji's own blood seemed to mingle with Shinichi's, painting the whole scene with its bold shades. Red… there was too much of red…"You can't die! Kudo, you can't die…a few simple stab wounds? No!"_

 _Heiji's vision clouded, everything was so blurry…but Kudo's dead body beneath him felt so real…_

 _Heiji._

 _It was the same face he'd seen all those weeks ago, smirking and sweating as the Heisei Holmes made his appearance at the diplomat's house to make his deduction. Nothing about it seemed false…everything was real…_

 ** _Heiji_** _._

 _But Kudo couldn't die! Not like this, not when he still had that huge case to solve! Heiji hadn't even truly helped him out there – even though he'd thought about it countless times, thought about telling Kudo that he could lend a hand, that they could work together again. Two heads were better than one, right?_

 ** _Heiji_** _!_

 _Yeah, they still had to bring that darn organisation down. Kudo wouldn't be alone, Heiji would help him out. Heiji would never let him get hurt like this…die like this…so why wouldn't Kudo wake up?!_

 _Wake up! Damn it…Kudo couldn't lie so still…so dead. This was not right…this…was…not…_

 ** _HEIJI_** _!_

Heiji's eyes snapped open. Leaning over him, his mother's concerned face swam into focus.

"Hei-chan?"

Heiji sat up, breathing harshly. His face was matted with sweat and his nightshirt clung to his chest.

' _Perspiration_ ,' Heiji concluded, his mind analysing, sifting and concluding – even as he sought to re-orient himself, ' _I was…dreaming? Kami! That was one messy, horrible dream!'_

"Hei-chan?" Shizuka ran her fingers through her son's hair, moving some of the strands that stuck to his forehead with sweat.

"I'm fine, Okan," Heiji replied, "Just…I'm fine,"

"You were tossing and turning in your sleep," Shizuka said in worry, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah," Heiji gave her a reassuring smile, or at least he hoped it was reassuring.

Shizuka looked unconvinced but left the matter alone. Heiji could handle things himself and if he hadn't gotten nightmares from seeing all those dead bodies he encountered in his cases, she was sure nothing else could spook him to such a level.

Heiji waited till his mother left the room before leaving the bed and snatching up his phone from his study table. He knew it was a dream, but the horror he'd felt in it had been real. And knowing that Kudo was actually in danger, from the syndicate that had tried to kill him, made the possibility of that dream all the more real and threatening.

Walking onto his balcony, Heiji dialled Conan's number. It was rather early to call – only five o' clock in the morning – but hearing his voice and knowing that he was safe would relax him.

"Ha-Hattori?" A yawn sounded through his mobile and Heiji grinned slightly, "What's with your totally unconventional times of calling?"

Ah, Kudo was annoyed. But Kudo being annoyed was better than Kudo being dead (Even if it was only in a dream) and Heiji was satisfied.

"Hattori?" Kudo repeated, now sounding more awake, "Oi! If you're going to call, you could at least say something!"

"Kudo," Heiji began jovially, "How are ya this fine mornin'?"

Heiji wouldn't tell Kudo about the dream just now; to acknowledge it would be accepting it and Heiji felt the need to forget it currently, deny that he'd ever seen it. He'd rather talk about inconsequential things for now.

"What." Kudo actually did seem annoyed now, "You called me at bloody five in the morning to ask me _how I am?"_

Heiji chuckled, falling into familiar banter with his rival, who soon warmed up to him. They talked about trivial matters, not delving into any cases. Kudo seemed to have picked up on his mood, for he steered clear of it as he told him about a new music video released by Two Mix and his father's latest, Night Baron, volume publication. Heiji was glad for that.

Half an hour later, Ran called for him to put the phone down and help out with breakfast, "If you're going to be up, you might as well help me instead of talking with your friends on the phone!"

"Guess I'll have to go now, Hattori,"

"Yeah, see ya this weekend," Heiji replied.

"Yes, this weekend." Kudo confirmed before ending the call.

Heiji smiled, deciding to follow Nee-chan's advice and see if he could help Okan out, he needed something to keep him busy either way. Thinking about the dream would only make him feel depressed; perhaps he could chop some vegetables?

"No!" Shizuka declared loudly when she heard his suggestion, "Out of my kitchen, Hei-chan!"

"Eh?"

"I only trust you with rice and soup, you stay away from my vegetables or they'll end up shredded!"

"I don't shred them, Okan!"

"Yes, you do!" saying so, she shooed him out.

Oh well, there's always kendo otherwise. He'd best leave the cooking to Kudo, perhaps that was not a very good pastime for him.

* * *

 ** _Shinmei Nintaro, author of the famous Detective Samonji series, breathes his last:_**

 _On the 8th of this month, the jovial and venerated writer, Shinmei Nintaro-san passed away in the presence of his wife and daughter. The newly re-opened series of Detective Samonji and the completion of the first book – The Climax of ½ – will be taken over by his daughter, Shinmei Kaori-san._

 _"I will continue writing this series my father was so fond of and make the legend of Samonji live on for the readers," Shinmei Kaori-san says._

 _The legendary writer and his ever evolving stories of the brilliant Samonji will be missed profusely. We look forward to his daughter's first publication and the legacy of Samonji's genius skills that has been passed on from father to child._

Heiji folded the newspaper, pushing it aside to concentrate on his breakfast. Kudo and the Mouri family would be arriving in an hour and he had to go and receive them from the station.

Reading about the case from the newspaper, no one would ever realise the final mystery that had been created by the late author – the clues hidden in his book 'The Climax of ½' that was only meant to challenge the readers.

 _'…I want to see it just once; a reader, with a face full of confidence, who solved the mystery before I gave the answer away…'_

Kudo had told him of the writer's last wish, but unfortunately the old man had passed away before he could realise that his final wish had indeed been fulfilled.

' _Not one, but **two** , Occhan,'_ Heiji mused thoughtfully, _'two readers understood your message, at the very least. And both Kudo and I appreciate and acknowledge the thought and precision put into the story to develop that code…'_

"Don't you have to leave, Heiji?" Shizuka asked her son as he stared thoughtfully at the folded paper, "The Mouri's will be arriving soon."

"Aa," Heiji gulped down his water, setting the chopsticks down, "Oyaji left rather early today, didn't he?"

"Hmm," Shizuka nodded, "A rather troubling case, I suppose. But don't go chasing after cases now, Hei-chan! You're supposed to be touring the Mouri's today!"

"No problem," Heiji snorted, putting on his cap as he got to his feet, "I've got no intention of it,"

 _'This is meant to be a visit, only a visit! No cases, no murders, no nothing!'_ Heiji nodded decisively as he slipped on his shoes, walking towards the station.

* * *

"That's the imperial temple's zoological garden!"

"That's Osaka dome!"

"And there's Tsutentaku!"

Ran smiled at Heiji's exuberant exclamations, his eyes practically shining with glee. Conan peered through the observation telescope, scouting out the Tsutentaku that looked a bit like the Tokyo Tower, his mouth quirking up in a small grin as he spotted it.

"So?" Hattori spread his arms out to emphasize with great pride, "Isn't Osaka a great place?"

Ran smiled and nodded, amused as she praised, "What a great panorama!"

"Yeah, but," Mouri countered, "That's not very different from the Tokyo Tower, you know,"

"You're joking?!" Hattori seemed scandalised, "You're not comparing the Tsutentaku to that boring red thing?"

Conan listened with one ear as he spun around the telescope again, taking in the sights. He had to admit, Osaka did have quite a few beautiful attractions. Hattori and Mouri got into a short and friendly argument about how wonderful Osaka's tower was, as Ran tried to smooth over the ruffles.

"Let's stop talking…let's eat!" Mouri suggested after a while and Conan had to agree, it had been since morning they were roaming the place and he was getting hungry.

"Ah, a little more patience," Hattori replied, glancing at his watch, "It's nearly time!"

Conan hopped down from the stool he was using and made his way to his western counterpart, grabbing him by his sleeve and pulling him a slight way.

"Oi, Hattori!"

"What?"

"A little more time?" Conan repeated, "Have patience? You haven't called me here for another case, have you?"

Hattori chuckled, "Nah, it's our transportation! It's special, so we'll have ta wait a while till it gets here."

Conan frowned, "Sure no case, right?"

"What do you go imagining?" Hattori grinned, shaking his hand dismissively, "This time it's not fer work! I only called ya here to visit, thinking ya might like ta see Osaka,"

Hattori sighed then, leaning against the railing of the observational deck, "Besides, life is short. No one knows when they'll die…"

His words were true, but the way he said it was odd.

"Hattori…What are you talking about?"

Hattori turned away from him for a while, gazing out, "I had a strange dream…"

"Dream?"

"Yes, I was stopping a murderer as usual, but this time he stabbed me," Heiji turned to look at him then, a wide smile on his face, "You were in it too! You even died!"

 _'Fake,'_ Conan realised immediately, _'That smile is so utterly fake…that dream must have troubled him greatly, but he's trying to make light of the situation. Trying to forget by laughing about it…okay, I'll go along with it if that's how you want it.'_

Appropriately, Conan let out a deadpan, "Ha ha."

With the acting skills he'd learnt from his mother, they were delivered with just the right amount of incredulity, cynicism and acceptance. Heiji's tense shoulders relaxed a bit and Conan knew he'd succeeded; succeeded in conveying to Hattori that his dream was absolute rubbish and that he'd never let such a thing happen. Hattori didn't need to fear him dying.

Because, despite all the bodies they came across – whole and cooling or warm and twitching, complete or mutilated, bloody or surgically clean – there was always something different about seeing a stranger die and seeing a friend die.

Of course, the first actual death one saw was always gruesome. The feeling of inadequateness when all their attempts to save them, with all their knowledge and first aid training, fell short… it was demoralising. Seeing a dead person and seeing a person die were two different things. And successful detectives were those that could pick themselves up after seeing a death and move forward, knowing it was not their fault and now their duty was to catch the culprit instead of wallowing.

But even then, seeing your friend die would be a whole new kind of shock. And even if it was in a dream –

"Hattori-kun!"

Conan looked up from his musings to see a medium height man, with dark hair and spectacles, run up to them.

"Here you are, at last!" Hattori exclaimed.

"Sorry, I'm late," the man apologised sheepishly, and then turning towards the Mouri's, he bowed slightly, "Hello, I'm Inspector Sakata Yusuku!"

"Inspector?" Ran asked with surprise.

 _'Oi,'_ Conan internally face-palmed, _'Don't tell me this guy…'_

Conan's guess turned out to be right.

Sakata was here to be their gloried 'chauffer' and their transportation was a police car. And despite Heiji's insistence at what a wonderful model the car was – Conan knew better cars than that, thanks to his mother – it was still a police car. But, damn, Conan had to admit, it was fast! Sakata was well under speed limit (Unlike Yukiko's reckless driving, which Shinichi did enjoy despite protests) but the car drive was smooth and without bumps.

"I have to say, police cars are luxurious! With them there are no traffic jams!" Heiji turned to face them from his seat next to the driver's, "So, everyone! Where do you want to go first?"

"You…" Mouri silently seethed before exploding, "You want us to tour Osaka in a _police_ car?!"

Conan's lips twitched in amusement at Heiji's genuine confusion at Mouri's statement.

"What? You don't like it?" Heiji asked, surprised, "It's the latest model! Brand new!"

Conan coughed into his fist, trying not to burst out in laughter. Heiji shot him a strange look to which he simply shook his head. Attempting and failing to pacify them, Heiji offered to put the siren on too, but Ran quickly shot that down.

* * *

Leading the trio into a small, but decent, ramen and udon joint – Mouri-tantei hadn't really said where he wanted to go, so he'd decided himself – Heiji waved to the chef, who grinned back and ushered them forward, giving them good seats in front of the cooking area so as to serve them better. Heiji grinned back; this was the perks of knowing the owners of a shop personally, it guaranteed you good service.

"Ya should really try the udon here, Nee-chan," Heiji said as he slipped on to a stool next to Conan, Ran seating herself between her father and pseudo-brother, "Ya eat it once and you'll never forget! What do ya say, Conan?"

Heiji remembered to not say 'Kudo' this time, thankfully, and ordered three bowls for the Tokyoites. Minutes later, three steaming bowls of udon were laid in front of them; the noodles were thick and the broth was clear, small condiments and a few sliced and boiled mushrooms were used as seasonings. The aroma was heavenly.

"Well?" Heiji grinned, "Give it a try!"

Ran obliged, taking a small sip of the broth, "The taste is light, but it's good!"

The shop owner and chef smiled at her genuine praise, "Hattori-kun, where did you get her from?" He levelled him a mischievous look, lifting his little finger towards him, "Is she your new one?"

"Why? Does it look like it?" Heiji scratched his head jokingly, smirking at him and earning a laugh from the chef.

Conan, who'd seen the chef insinuate that Ran was Heiji's girlfriend by indicating his little finger, reached out to give him a sharp pinch on his thigh.

"Ouch!" Heiji hissed softly before smirking at his eastern counterpart, "Oi, take it easy, Kudo. Just joking! Nee-chan's all yours."

"Not Kudo," Conan murmured, glaring at him lightly but taking the ribbing sportingly.

"So, how d'ya like it?"

"It's good," Conan admitted, slurping up a few noodles with his chopsticks, "Aren't you getting a bowl for yourself, too?"

"Nah," Heiji shook his head, "Not now. We've still got places ta show ya. I'll probably eat something then."

And that was true. Because after the udon, they visited a takoyaki restaurant and then a ramen shop and then sampled a few shrimps on a roadside stall and then…Well, it was certainly a food fiesta going on. And when Mouri expressed a desire to visit a local okonomiyaki shop, Heiji groaned.

"Can't have told me tha' before the takoyaki? We'll have ta take quite few U-turns now and the traffic's crazy…"

"That's no problem," Sakata-keiji said, "I know one around here. How about I take you there?"

"Good enough for me," Mouri sat back, satisfied.

* * *

Kazuha knew it when Heiji had given her that call – Kudo was coming to Osaka. And she'd been invited to dinner with them. Heiji was planning on introducing that Kudo girl to Shizuka-baa-chan and Heizo-jii-chan – were they already on the introduction to parents stage?! No, no, no…that mustn't be! But, either way, she had her doubts and what better to do now than confront them?

So, she'd made up her mind. She was going to follow them; trail them oh so carefully that even Heiji's detective sixth sense couldn't pick her out! This was only to make sure Heiji was in good hands, of course! Nothing nefarious…really. She just wanted to see what kind of girl this Kudo was. And probably make sure Kudo wasn't stringing Heiji along, yeah that too… Argh! How she hated her! How she hated that she was the one who brought smiles to Heiji's face, the spark in his eyes as he talked about cases they'd solved together.

And then, at the same time, she couldn't help but be happy that Heiji was happy; even if it was because of Kudo. Which was why, through the tangle of emotions, Kazuha had decided that the least she could do was make sure this Kudo knew about her – about Toyama Kazuha's existence and that should she hurt Heiji, she was going to get it from Kazuha! And that led her here…

Kazuha made her way to a couple of places Heiji was sure to show them. Waiting at the station when she didn't know the time of their arrival was stupid, but she knew Heiji would bring them to the Tsutentaku around lunch time. It was the closest to the restaurants Heiji preferred, so the timing was perfect. And she was right.

Heiji, an older man, a young woman who seemed to be around her age and a little boy, all of them trooped in about noon to see the sights. Kazuha would have been proud at her deduction if she wasn't fuming with jealousy – she was right! Heiji _was_ going off to Tokyo to see a girl!

' _The girl is pretty,_ ' Kazuha admitted, looking at the family as Heiji chatted animatedly with the young boy, ' _and Heiji seems to get along well with all the Kudo's. Even the young child!'_

But no matter how pretty that girl was, Great Detective of the East or not, she wasn't going to get Heiji so easily! Who did she think she was? Behaving so familiarly with him, oh – they're even wearing matching turtlenecks and jackets! Going for the couple look, were they? A tiny part of her chastised her; jealousy was an ugly emotion and she shouldn't let herself be consumed by it; but when she remembered the delightful smile on Heiji's face every time he talked about Kudo, Kazuha couldn't help but feel slightly bitter even as another part of her was happy for him.

"Occhan! Don't forget the rice!" Heiji called out, snapping Kazuha out of her musings.

Heiji told his guests something about calling his mother and disappeared around a corner. Taking the chance, Kazuha got up from her seat, moving towards the Tokyoites. She slipped into Heiji's seat, nonchalantly resting her head between her palms as she gazed at the brunette two seats over. The little boy right next to her gave her a confused glance as his elder sibling smiled at her politely.

"Excuse me, but that seat is taken –"

"So, you're Kudo, huh?" Kazuha cut her off.

"Heh?!"

* * *

Conan and Ran gave her incredulous glances as she spoke.

"You're all Heiji can talk abou', ya know," the girl said, slowly raising Conan's panic levels inch by inch, "Almost all the time…"

"Eh…wait!" Conan waved his hands in front of her, anything to get her to stall, _'Damn! What has Hattori been telling this girl?!'_

"Don't pretend ya don't understand," the girl continued, "I know everything,"

 _'Everything? **Everything**?! That blabber mouth, no good, pig-headed, Detective of the Wes –'_

"Yer name is Kudo! And after meetin' ya, Heiji was completely smitten!" the girl had now leaned over Conan to glare at Ran.

 _'S-Smitten!'_ Conan blinked, before realising what was going on. He wondered briefly, if he should feel incredulous or insulted, that Hattori's friend thought 'Kudo Shinichi' was a girl living in Tokyo. He settled for insulted, ' _Damn that Hattori! I'm going to pry out everything you told this girl, just to make sure you haven't given me away. Nearly gave me a heart attack, she did…'_

"A-Ah," Ran stuttered in embarrassment, "It's a mistake, I assure you –"

"Since you're here," the girl overrode Ran, almost ignoring her words, "Let me tell you something. Heiji and I were once joined by chains of iron –"

Conan blinked incredulously at the way the girl fired up, nearly thrusting her fist into Ran's face, _'Geez, this girl! And the hell is 'Chains of iron'?'_

"– So if ya want ta get ta Heiji, you'll have ta go through me first –"

"Kazuha? What are ya doin' here?"

Conan gave an inaudible sigh of relief at Heiji's appearance. The girl, Kazuha, abruptly paused whatever she was saying, looking sheepish.

* * *

"AH HA HA HAAHA!" Heiji thumped his hand on the table, nearly doubling up with laughter, "I can't believe it! Kazuha… That Kudo I was telling ya about is a guy! A guy!"

Conan levelled him a slight glare when Heiji had the audacity to wink at him, before dissolving into chuckles once more. Pink faced and now quite ashamed, Kazuha mumbled inaudibly as she twiddled her thumbs.

"And anyway," Heiji smirked, pointing at Ran, "She's his girlfriend."

"Eh?" Ran shook her head, "Oh no! Nothing like that!"

"She says she's not, though," Kazuha pointed out sullenly.

"Yeah, coz she's embarrassed," Heiji added, unable to stop himself, enjoying the way Conan's expression morphed from irked to furious but still unable to say anything in present company.

"And why didn't you invite Kudo too, then?" Kazuha asked, crossed, "Inviting his girlfriend but not him? How odd, Heiji…"

"Er," Heiji paused, "Well, that's because," Conan gave him a wide eyed look, cautioning him not to give away too much and Heiji settled on something simple, "Because he's busy…"

"Busy?" Kazuha narrowed her eyes in slight suspicion.

"Anyway, could you tell us about it?" Ran asked with curiosity, thankfully derailing that conversation, "That 'chains of iron' you mentioned?"

Heiji did not remember feeling so simultaneously embarrassed and happy – Joyous? Content? Why though? – at the same time as Kazuha told Kudo and the Mouri's about the incident with the handcuffs. He levelled a mutinous glare at Kudo when he snickered as Kazuha and Heiji denied being in a relationship; really, how had they come to talk of this again? Though, he did resent the fact that Kazuha called herself his elder sister – why, she was only a few months older than him!

"Hey, Hattori," Conan asked him as they made their way out the restaurant, "was it her? The one who was following us back then?"

Heiji nodded, both he and Conan had been worried about their mysterious tail when they'd first felt its presence, "Yeah, I asked her. She's been after us since the Tsutentaku. Don't worry, Kudo, I'm pretty sure none of those guys are here!"

"Don't call me that," Conan scowled even as he relaxed, "and even if it wasn't them, anyone following us makes me feel uncomfortable. But," he levelled a glance at Kazuha where she walked in front of them, "she's pretty good. Her father's an Inspector, you say?"

"Aa," Heiji nodded, a grin quirking up as he saw Conan admire Kazuha's skill at stalking. Geez, what a thing to admire something about someone, but that was Kudo for you. Besides, Heiji couldn't say much, he admired people for much the same reasons, "Toyama Ginshiro, works under my Oyaji."

"Well," Mouri called out loudly as they left the shop, calling everyone's attention to him, "that was good! The okonomiyaki here is delicious!"

Heiji beamed, "Isn't it? Now, where do ya want ta go next?"

"I'm coming along." Kazuha declared, as she marched towards the parked car and opened the back door before sliding in.

"Eh?" Heiji blinked, sliding into the passenger seat and turning around to face her, "Who told ya that ya could come along? You'll be meeting us for dinner anyway, aren't ya? We won't have enough space in the car!"

"Of course we will!" Kazuha retorted, "Ya can have the little kid with ya up front, I'm sure Ran-chan won't mind me sitting at the back with her, right?"

"O-Of course not," Ran smiled hesitantly, feeling Kazuha's insistent gaze upon her as she took her seat, Kudo right next to her.

Conan, on the other hand, scowled at being called a 'little kid'. Heiji would have poked fun at that, claiming not to mind – and wouldn't Conan-kun like sitting with his Heiji-nii-chan? – When a startled gasp caught their attention. Heiji turned away then, poking his head out of the window, seeing Conan do the same from the back seat – he'd gotten in with Ran and Kazuha in the end – from his periphery vision.

"Look!" A man pointed upwards and pedestrians hastened to scramble out of the way.

Heiji and Conan were only a moment too late in realising what was happening.

Crash!

Down and onto the bonnet of the police car, a corpse landed heavily. Its eyes were wide and unseeing, mouth gaping open in horror and the paleness of the skin only further proved that the man was long dead. Upon his chest, a wallet lay pinned across his heart, pierced through with a knife. Dried blood clung to his suit, now stained a dark brown after exposure to air.

Kazuha and Ran let out muted screams as Heiji unfroze, both he and Conan jumping out of the car in instinct, running towards the body. More for procedure than out of any real hope, Heiji pressed two fingers against the man's neck, only confirming his suspicions that the man was long dead. A silent shake of his head to Conan and the both of them turned around.

"Who is this man?" Mouri asked in surprise as he looked at the corpse.

"I don't know!" Heiji snarled in frustration, he was as clueless as the others here, "He just fell onto the car! From the roof of tha' building!"

At his own words, Heiji turned to look up, a dark shadow and silhouette of a man peering from the roof top catching his attention, _'Someone's up there! Damn, is that…?'_

"Sakata-han!" Heiji called out as he and Conan rushed towards the entrance of the building, intent on making their way up to the roof, "Call the police!"

"Heiji?!"

Ignoring Kazuha's questioning and incredulous shout, Heiji continued, "Mouri-han, let no one enter or leave the building!"

Kudo and Heiji rushed up, taking two stairs at once, panting heavily as they reached the roof and threw open the door.

 _'Well,'_ Heiji thought as they saw the man, standing against the edge, still peering down below, _'it seems like my plan for a peaceful visit is outta the window now.'_

"It's strange to stay at the place of crime without even running away," Conan began with a smirk, making the man turn towards them in surprise and shock.

Heiji followed it up with his own quip, "Not that you _can_ run away. No way out fer ya now. So, care to tell us, why did ya drop a body onto a police car?"

"Eh? No, no!" the man shook his head, raising his arms in defence, "I didn't do anything! You're mistaken!"

Heiji and Conan exchanged long-suffering glances. Well, this was going to be a long case.

* * *

 **AN: Soooo, how was it? Being out of touch from this fanfic for a while, I'm not sure if the flow has come out well. Do let me know, okay?**

 **I would also like to give my thanks to all my faithful reviewers for being so patient and kind - espeacially my guest reviewers** winx club **and** Rockster **. Thanks a lot for your dedicated reviews! They really encourage me to write!  
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 **To Rockster - Thanks for reviewing! It's good to know that Kazuha's pov made sense...And I've changed "Kyuu" to "Dan". Thanks for that! And actually, no...I don't know what joke is there behind 'Glegle' or that there even was a joke :/ Oh, I didn't really think of the internet back then. Also, considering the internet articles only post headlines or very important news and not everything the newspaper does... I don't think online newspapers were a thing back in 1990's. Er, were they? Guess I don't really know. Aww, but I'd have to go back and change EVERYTHING then. Pls, let's leave it at that and not get Glegle into the story for now?**

 **Yup, I do wait for your comments! Just as I wait for all my regular reviewers :) One, because you actually do enjoy the story and getting to know your feed back makes me feel acccomplished. Two, you make a very, very good attempt to read through and point out any mistakes I've made so that I may correct them; I'm one of those people who appreciate critics and good reviews that point out the 'well done' part and the 'needs improvement' part :P Three, you put forth questions and scenarios that actually make me stop and think...is this how I should write it? Or should I change that scene? And did that part make sense or is it not being conveyed properly?**

 **SO, yes. Your reviews are AWESOME! And they're thought provoking, perceptive and keep me on my toes! Which author doesn't want such an interactive and thoughtful reader? :) So, yeah, I do anticipate your comments!**

 **Hey, that's fine. I was not sure if you'd even read** A Case of Identity **, so that you actually did read it is surprising and heart-warming in itself :)**

 **And yep, harsh AND honest. Both very important things a reviewer must be. 'Coz if you're not honest, how will the author ever improve if the reviewer never points out any mistake? So, that was a compliment. No offense meant :P And seriously, I don't know about others, but DON'T tone down your criticisms. I wish other reviewers would not be oh-so-polite when they review, so you telling me exactly how the chapter was, is a good thing. Great review as always!**

 **And thanks, once more, for reviewing!**

 **To winx club - Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you enjoyed the interlude. It was short, I know, but hopefully well explained :) Hope this chapter was well received too! Let me know how you liked it!  
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 **A** **ll of you silent readers out there - I hope you are liking this story. If you are (and if not) do please let me know by reviewing! It does not take much time and highly encourages me to write faster! But, thank you all the same :)  
**

 **So...**

 **REVIEW!**


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